


What Happens When You Summon Emiya Shirou in Chaldea.

by AccelBreaker



Category: Fate/Grand Order, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Fluff without Plot, Gen, Hilarity Ensues, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-06
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:41:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 80
Words: 271,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23513287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AccelBreaker/pseuds/AccelBreaker
Summary: What would happen when Ritsuka summons Emiya Shirou in Chaldea? The result: chaos. Crack-fic.
Relationships: Amakusa Shirou Tokisada | Ruler/Semiramis | Assassin of Red, Emiya Shirou/Artoria Pendragon | Saber
Comments: 207
Kudos: 527





	1. Summoning the Shirou

_Chaldea; the organization created to protect humanity. Its remaining members include its last master, Fujimaru Ritsuka, Mashu Kyrielight, Leonardo Da Vinci, Fou, the staff of Chaldea, and many other servants summoned from the Throne of Heroes._

_Usually, every day in Chaldea is always eventful because of the number of servants around._

_However, today may as well be Chaldea's most eventful and craziest day ever..._

_All because of a saint quartz summoning of a certain hero..._

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ritsuka now stands in Chaldea's summoning room. After countless hours of grinding for saint quarts, he was finally ready to summon new servants, hoping that he would get some servants instead of Black Keys, Mapo Tofu, and other craft essences.

"All right! Hope I can get some new servants today!" Ritsuka exclaimed excitedly. He was hoping to get some new servants after his last summoning event in which...it didn't go so well for him in which he ended up with only craft essences.

And that happened multiple times on that day...

Anyways, Ritsuka puts the negative thoughts from his last summoning event behind him and thought positively. "Hope I get something good today," he thought as he placed the saint quartz onto the summoning alter.

"Senpai. Are you sure about this?" Mashu asked.

"Sure. Why?"

"Well..." Mashu meekly said before thinking about the last summoning event...

_(Flashback...)_

"GOD DAMN IT! JUST HOW?! HOW?! AFTER MULTIPLE TIMES, I STILL DIDN'T GET A SERVANT?! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?! IS THE SUMMONING SYSTEM SCREWING ME OVER OR WHAT?!" Ritsuka yelled on the other side of his room after the multiple failed attempts.

At that point, he was starting to sound like berserker and started cursing like there was no tomorrow.

It was then that Mashu happened to be nearby and was traumatized at Ritsuka's yelling and cursing.

_(Back to the present...)_

"That's why," Mashu said after recalling what happened after the summoning event.

"Oh..." Ritsuka said embarrassingly after finding out that Mash heard his berserker-crazed outburst and curses. "Well today can't go that bad."

"You think so?"

"Yeah. I just probably had a bad streak that day. Anyway, after weeks of grinding for saint quartz and summon tickets, I'm finally ready to summon some new servants!"

"Okay then...just don't rage and flip out when things go wrong please," Mashu pleaded.

"Relax. What's the worst that can happen?"

_(A few minutes later...)_

Ritsuka was in despair. Total despair as the saint quartz and summoning tickets he was saving up for were completely wasted as all that came out of the summoning system were like last time: craft essences.

Especially when most of the craft essences were Mapo Tofu and Black Keys.

"Damn it...it's just like last time..." Ritsuka muttered as he was all fours on the ground in despair while crying.

"Senpai..." Mashu said worryingly.

"Why...just why?"

Mash looked at Ritsuka and gave him some words of comfort. "If you don't mind...you can have this," she said as she hands him a few saint quartz.

Ritsuka looks at Mash in shock. "Mashu, you..." he stammers.

"I know it's not much...but please. Take it."

Ritsuka grabed the saint quartz and gave her a hug. "Thank you."

Mashu blushed at the hug. "N-No problem."

As Ritsuka released Mash from the hug he gave her, he then went up to the summoning altar and placed the saint quartz there. As the summoning system glowed up, Ritsuka made a prayer.

"Please give me something good! I beg of you!"

As he prayed, the alter lit up, temporarily blinding the two from how bright the light was. The saint quartz then disappeared, then formed into multiple blue orbs. Then the blue orbs started to connect with each other and turned into a ring of blue sparks swirling around. Then the ring split into three and continued to swirl around.

As the light faded, it revealed a silver card showing a knight holding a sword with both hands. However, the card started to cackle as gold sparks moved around the card, turning it into a gold saber class card. The card then disappeared as a man appeared.

The man had red hair, golden brown eyes, and his facial features looks like he's Japanese. He was nearly shirtless as on his left arm was a red shroud with markings with a white kimono on his shoulders. On his legs were black pants and steeled toe boots along with a Katana strapped on his side.

"Saber-Class Servant: Emiya Shirou. Pseudo-Servant vessel to Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith. I have responded to your summoning call. I ask you, are you my master?"

The seconds become endless and the tension grew in the air as the three of them looked at each other. After a few minutes of silence, Ritsuka finally spoke out.

"Y-Yes," he said in shock as he was trying to process what just happened. Not only he managed to get something hopefully good for once, but the servant he managed to summon was a pseudo-servant, something he has not seen for a while.

"Oh my, just what is going on here?" A new voice came in.

Ritsuka and Mashu looked behind to see Da Vinci coming into the room. "Ah! Da Vinci, you're just in time. Can you check the stats on Shirou-san please?" Mashu asked.

"Shirou? Who's he?"

"A new servant that I just summoned. He's right in front of you."

As Da Vinci looked at Shirou on the alter, she noticed something as she was checking her stats that made her gasp.

**Servant: Emiya Shirou(Saber)**

**Strength: A**

**Endurance: B+**

**Agility: C+**

**Mana: B**

**Luck: E**

**Noble Phantasm: ?, ?**

"What the heck? Why can't I see his noble phantasms?" Da Vinci thought.

"What's wrong Da Vinci?" Mash asked.

"Well...Ritsuka, Mashu, you might want to see this."

Ritsuka and Mashu then went over to see what was going on with Shirou's stats. While Ritsuka was inwardly smiling as he finally got something good for once, they were surprised at how his noble phantasms were blurred out.

"What the heck? We can't see his noble phantasms?" Ritsuka exclaimed.

"Is it even possible for this to happen?" Mashu asked Da Vinci.

"Honestly, even with my genius and experience, this is something that I am stumped on as well. We never had a case where we can't see his noble phantasms, so this is a first."

"Uh...master...just what is going on?" Shirou asked.

The three then looked at Shirou.

"Umm...Shirou-san. For some reason, we can't see your noble phantasms in the stats," Mashu replied.

"Huh...guess something went wrong with the summoning system."

"Can you still use them?" Da Vinci asked.

"I think so, although I rarely use one of them to be honest. I consider the other noble phantasm that I have as a last resort when things get ugly."

"I see...well then, welcome to Chaldea Shirou! Let me and Mash show you the place!" Ritsuka exclaimed happily.

"Chaldea? What's that?" Shirou asked as he, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci left the summoning room and began walking in Chaldea's hallway.

"An organization designed to protect humanity. What we do is that we find singularities and try to fix the problem."

"I see...just how do you do that?"

"Simple. We summon heroic spirits using the summoning alter we have here. It's how you got here to begin with."

"And I suppose you get those heroic spirits from the Throne of Heroes correct?"

"Y-Yes! You know about the Throne of Heroes?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. I used to be a magus before I became a heroic spirit, so I know what the Throne of Heroes is."

"Really?! What skills do you have?"

"Well...I have a B-rank in magic resistance and riding, and a C-rank in Independent Action, which is fair considering my actions in the past. As for my personal skills, I have quite a few. I have the Mana Burst skill at A-rank, in which it boosts my parameters to what a master can muster. My Eye of the Mind is ranked B, in which it allows me to predict my opponent's next moves in battle to a certain extent. I also have the clairvoyance skill at rank C. It isn't like Merlin's or Solomon's as it can only let me track fast-moving objects from long distances away."

"Wow! That's a lot!" Ritsuka exclaimed.

"Yeah. Lastly is my magecraft. Like mentioned earlier, I was a magus when I was a human. While my magecraft is ranked C-, I specialize in a certain magecraft."

"And what would that be?" Mash asked.

Shirou smirked. "Well, just take a look at it and see."

He then stretched his arm out and said two words that were stuck to him in his entire life.

**"Trace on."**

As soon as the words left him, a familiar pair of Chinese falchions appeared in his hands.

"Is that a-?!" Da Vinci exclaimed in shock.

"Yup."

"Wait...did you just project a noble phantasm?!" Mashu exclaimed in shock.

"Yes."

"Wow! This is incredible!" Da Vinci exclaimed. "So are you able to mass produce noble phantasms?"

"To a certain extent. It all depends on what weapon I see and if I am able to copy it or not."

"See? Copy?" Ritsuka asked.

Shirou let out a sigh before continuing. "The way my projection magecraft works is that whenever I see a weapon, I put the image of it in my head and attempt to replicate it."

"Is that so..." Mashu asked.

"Yeah. However, one limit to this is that I can't replicate divine constructs."

"Are you somehow related to the red bowman in any way since you carry that name as well as tracing noble phantasms?" Da Vinci asked.

Shirou gave it a long thought before saying, "In a way, I am."

"I see..." Ritsuka said before his stomach starts growling, making him blush.

Shirou chuckled at that. "You seemed to be hungry."

"Yeah...let's stop by the cafeteria."

"As you wish master. Do you want me to cook something as well?"

"You can cook?"

"Yes."

And then the group of four then left for the cafeteria.

_(Meanwhile in the cafeteria...)_

"Archer! More seconds!"

"Yes, yes, coming right up."

In Chaldea's cafeteria, Archer(also known as heroic spirit EMIYA) was cooking up multiple plates of food for a bunch of groups that included Arturia and her alternate selves, Ishtar, her rider self, and Ereshkigal, Pravati and her look-alikes, Illya and her alternate selves, Miyu, and Astraea. Right now, Arturia and her alternate selves were chowing down on the food Archer made for them, Ishtar, her rider self, and Astraea were fighting over who gets the last slice cake from Archer while Ereshkigal watched nervously, Pavati, BB, Passionlip, and Meltlilith were talking to each other, and Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu were eating deserts with Irisviel and surprisingly, Kiritsugu.

As such, this was a usual day in Chaldea's cafeteria, in which it always involves the archer making food for the den of lions, three goddesses fighting each other with one watching on the sidelines, a bunch of look-alikes having a chat with each other, and sisters enjoying sweets with their family.

However, as soon as Shirou, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci entered the cafeteria, things changed completely.

Because apparently, Shirou's presence can alert others immediately.

"This famillar presence...could it be?" They all thought in unison.

All the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Luvia, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, and Archer suddenly dropped what they were doing and noticed that Shirou along with Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci just came into the room. However, all their attention was focused on Shirou, especially the girls. As the girls gazed upon Shirou, they blushed at how handsome he got.

Especially in the abs. Oh those defined abs of his.

After a few moments of silence, Ritsuka tried to break the silence, but the girls got to him first.

"SHIROU!" Arturia and her alter, lily, summer archer, rider alter, santa alter, lancer, lancer alter, and ruler versions along with Mysterious Heroine X, Mysterious Heroine X Alter, and Mysterious Heroine XX exclaimed happily as their sheath returned.

"EMIYA-KUN?!" Ishtar, her rider self, and Ereshkigal exclaimed as they let the emotions of their containers taking over.

"SENPAI?!" Parvati, BB, Passionlip, and Meltlilith exclaimed after seeing their senpai again.

"ONII-CHAN!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu exclaimed in joy for seeing their big brother again.

"SHEROU?!" Astraea exclaimed after seeing her crush again.

"Shirou..." Kiritsugu said, not knowing what came over him.

"Shirou? Then is this the Shirou Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu have been talking about?" Irisviel asked.

"..." EMIYA just stayed silent after seeing this.

Shirou, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci had to cover their ears to lower the sound damage they were receiving. As the shouting was over, the group of four removed their hands from their ears and looked at the groups of girls with looks of shock on their faces. Especially Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci since they didn't know that Shirou had a connection with everyone in the cafeteria until now.

Then came another moment of silence, and it made the tension quite thick in the air as everyone was staring at each other.

"Wow...is it me...or am I seeing multiple versions of Saber, Rin, Sakura, and Illya along with Luvia, my old man, and Archer in the same room?" Shirou thought. He then blinked once, then twice, and let out a few small breaths. After a few minutes, he said, "I-I'm back."

Then suddenly, all the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia jumped out of their seats and immediately tackled him to the ground with a hug.

"WELCOME BACK SHIROU/EMIYA-KUN/SHEROU/SENPAI/ONII-CHAN!" they all exclaimed in happiness.

Moving sightly apart, Shirou showed his joy with a contagious grimace, not knowing that a shadow was approaching him. Soon, he noticed the shadow and saw Irisviel coming forward to him.

After a small exchange of glances, Irisviel started the conversation.

"So...you're Shirou that Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu has been talking about?" she asked.

"Y-Yes. Who are you?"

Irisviel let out a giggle before saying, "My name is Irisviel Von Einsbern! The wife of Kiritsugu, the mother of Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and the adoptive mother of Miyu! And since you're their big brother, that makes you my adoptive son! You can call me mom if you want!" in an excited tone.

"Iri..." Kiritsugu muttered while trying to look stotic, but failed because of Iri's shenanigans and laughed a bit.

"I see..." Shirou said sheepishly, now knowing where Illya gets her personality from.

"How did you get here Shirou?" Arturia asked.

"Master summoned me here."

"And it was worth it! All of those quartz..." Fujimaru exclaimed happily.

Arturia sighed. "Anyway, welcome back my scabbard."

"Your scabbard? Don't you mean my scabbard?" Arturia Alter asked in a menacing voice while glaring at her, causing Arturia to growl at her.

"Now, now, we don't have to fight over him...right?" Arturia Lily meekly said.

"I'm sorry Lily, but Shirou's mine," Lancer Arturia said.

"As if. He's mine for the taking," Lancer Arturia Alter replied while staring at her non-altered version.

"Not if I can help it," Ruler Arturia said as she attempts to cling onto Shirou, but fails.

"Hey! Hands off him!" Archer Arturia yells.

"Shouldn't I say the same about you?" Rider Arturia Alter said.

"And what about you?" Santa Alter Arturia asked.

"That's it! No saber-face is going to steal what's mine!" Mysterious Heroine X yelled.

"That's right. After all, Shirou is mine," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Like hell I would allow that!" Mysterious Heroine XX exclaimed.

As the Arturias let go and started fighting over Shirou, Astraea tried to grasp her chance, but failed because of Ishtar getting in her way.

"Hey! Get your hands off him Astraea! He's not yours!" Ishtar yelled.

"And why not!? He's not yours either!" Astraea replied.

"Will you two please calm down?" Ershekigal said with a sigh. However, she didn't get an answer as the stand-off between Ishtar and Astraea turned into a brawl.

"Let me join in on this!" Ishtar Rider yelled as she joined in the brawl.

Meanwhile, Parvati, BB, Passionlip, and Meltlilith tried to take Shirou during the chaos, but Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu intervened.

"We won't let you steal onii-chan away from us!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu exclaimed.

"No! Senpai is mine!" Parvati, BB, Passionlip, and Meltlilith said in unison.

As a result, Chaldea's cafeteria was turned into a brawl room with groups of people fighting each other over who gets Shirou, with Shirou, Archer, Ritsuka, Mashu, Da Vinci, Irisviel, and Kiritsugu watching from the side lines.

"Wow...Mashu, should I stop them?" Ritsuka asked.

"For your safety senpai, I think not," Mashu replied.

"Unless you want to die early," Da Vinci said.

"Oh my...I never knew that my adoptive son was this popular with the girls...I want grandkids now!" Irisviel exclaimed.

"Iri..." Kiritsugu said, not wanting to argue with her.

Shirou and Archer looked at the chaos in front of them. They were just shocked at how much destruction the girls are causing now in which multiple chairs were thrown, tables were flipped, cracks on the walls were created, and some of the plates on the tables were shattered from the throwing.

Eventually, Shirou had enough of this and went in to stop the chaos in the room.

"You know, that's hell you're walking into," Archer said to Shirou as he arrived at the kitchen counter.

"I know Archer, I know," Shirou replied. Shirou then grabbed the katana and its sheath that was placed on his side, and tapped the ground with it, grabbing everyone's attention and making them stop fighting each other. "Okay then, now that I have everyone's attention, can we all stop fighting among each other? I don't want everyone here hurting each other. Please?"

As soon as Shirou said that, everyone blushed immediately from Shirou's voice and words and stopped fighting amongst each other, surprising Ritsuka, Mash, and Da Vinci.

"Did...did Shirou-san just calmed everyone down?" Mashu asked.

"I think he just did," Ritsuka replied.

"Wow. That's something you don't see every day. Is this one of Shirou's skills?" Da Vinci asked jokingly.

"What? Like that's possible," Ritsuka said with a laugh. Then Ritsuka's stomach starting growling, alerting everyone in the room.

Shirou noticed this and asked. "Master, forgive me for asking this, but are you still hungry?"

"Y-Yes..." Ritsuka muttered.

Shirou let out a smile. "You want me to make something then?"

"Yes please."

"Very well," Shirou said as he proceeded to grab some utensils and ingredients to make something.

Not wanting to miss out on this chance knowing that Shirou was about to make food, all the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia yelled out, "PLEASE MAKE SOMETHING FOR US TOO!" in unison.

Shirou let out a sigh. "All right, all right."

Moments later, Shirou was preparing multiple dishes of food not only for Ritsuka, but also for the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia. He even made food for Mashu, Da Vinci, Irisviel, and Kiritsugu to not leave them out. As soon as he was done and placed them on the countertop, everyone grabbed a plate of food and started to take a bit out of it. As soon as they took a bite, everyone displayed extreme joy on their faces. In fact, the joy was so evident on their faces that it generated a yellow and pink aura with imaginary flowers around them as well.

For a short while, peace seemed to return in Chaldea's cafeteria...until Illya asked Shirou a question that raised hell all over again.

"Hey onii-chan, have the staff at Chaldea given you a room yet?" Illya asked.

"Not yet. Why?"

"Well...just where are you going to sleep?" Illya asked.

"Well..."

Arturia then entered into the conversation and said, "Obviously he'll be sleeping in my room."

That's when the chaos returned after that one line was said.

"WHAT!? JUST HOLD ON A SECOND! YOU CAN'T DO THAT!" Ishtar, her rider self, and Ershekigal yelled.

"That's not fair! You can't just tell everyone that Shero's going to sleep in your room and make everyone accept it!" Astraea said.

"Yeah! If anything, shouldn't Shirou sleep in my room considering that you're also me as well?" Arturia's other versions said.

"No! That's not allowed either!" Parvati, BB, Passionlip, and Meltlilith said.

"Stay away from onii-chan!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

Eventually, the yelling got worse, and the girls started fighting all over again. Shirou sighed at what just happened.

"This is going to be my life in Chaldea from now on huh? Well...at least it can't get any even crazier than this...even though it's already too crazy." he thought as he watched the chaos from the kitchen.

Then, as his luck would determine it, four more servants came into the room and immediately saw Shirou on the counter with wide eyes.

And they knew Shirou as well.

"Shirou! Is dinner ready yet?" Jaguar Man asked.

"Hey kid! It's been a while! You're a heroic spirit now? Nice!" Lancer Cu exclaimed.

"Shirou..." Medusa said, surprised to see Shirou in Chaldea.

"FAKER!" Archer Gilgamesh yelled, clearly showing that he was not happy seeing him here.

"Damn it..." Shirou thought.

"Senpai, I think life in Chaldea will be a lot crazier with Shirou-san around," Mashu said.

"You may be right," Ritsuka said, agreeing with her. "Although now I'm wondering is how all of these servants know Shirou."

"Who knows?" Da Vinci said.

And this is how Chaldea experienced its craziest day ever...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I have no idea what came over me when writing this lol. Although it would be interesting to see the reactions between Muramasa and the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, the Emiya family, and Astraea if DW WOULD MAKE MURAMASA A SERVANT!
> 
> Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this crazy mess of a fanfic I made XD. Also, I do not own Fate/Stay Night and Fate/Grand Order. The respective companies does.
> 
> Update: 4/12/20: Changed a few things to make the story a bit more sense and added a few more things for more hilarity.


	2. Knights of the Round Meet Shirou

Emiya Shirou is screwed.

And in the worst way possible.

Why?

Simple, because he's stuck in a situation between a rock and a hard place...or rather five knights and a wall to be more precise.

Right now, Shirou is stuck in one of Chaldea's hallways in which his back is up against the wall while he is facing the Knights of the Round who are glaring at him.

Shirou sighed at the situation he was in. There were several situations Shirou was in in the past, and this was not one of them. Sure, he plunged himself into a holy grail war, fought off multiple servants including the king of heroes, nearly got himself killed multiple times, and actually died once from a certain blue lancer.

But this? This was one situation Shirou hoped he would never get himself into.

And yet as his luck would have it, he got himself into one.

Right now, Gawain, Lancelot, Mordred, Gareth, Tristan, and Bedivere were looking at Shirou with interest. Mordred looked like she was scowling, Gawain looked like he was interrogating him, Lancelot looked like he was disappointed, Tristan actually opened his eyes for once in disbelief, and Bedivere and Gareth looked at him with curiosity.

Shirou sighed again. "Just how did I end up in this situation?" he thought as he thought about the events that led up to this point...

_(A few minutes earlier...)_

Shirou was just walking down in Chaldea's hallway with Arturia, when suddenly, he felt something following behind him.

"Shirou? Is there anything wrong?" Arturia asked.

"Nothing. It's just that...it feels like something is following me."

Arturia then looked behind, but saw nothing.

"I don't see anything Shirou. Maybe it's just your imagination."

"You sure? It doesn't feel like it."

"Maybe you're just overreacting a bit. Anyway Shirou, let's hurry. I'm hungry..." Arturia moaned.

Shirou chuckled. "All right, all right..." he said as he and Arturia went into the cafeteria.

However, what Shirou didn't know was that he was being followed by Gawain, Lancelot, Mordred, Gareth, Tristan, and Bedivere, who reluctantly came along. Ever since they found out about Shirou's interactions with their king and her multiple versions and how different they act when with Shirou, it piqued their interest, especially Mordred's. Not only that, but after seeing the interactions between Shirou and the Arturias over time, their interest went up even further.

And how did they find out about Shirou?

Simple. It was Merlin that told them about Shirou.

"Do you think he sees us?" Gawain asked.

"Nah. Pretty sure he can't sense us this far away," Tristan replied.

Lancelot sighed. "Just why are we doing this again?" he asked.

"Isn't it obvious? To find out what relationship this "Shirou" have with father and her other versions," Mordred replied. "I want to know why father always act like this when Shirou's around. I mean, have you seen what happened last week?"

The other knights looked at her and asked, "What happened?"

"Simple. I saw Shirou was cooking for father and her other versions in the cafeteria, and you want to know what happened?"

They looked at her in curiosity, wanting to know what happened next.

"All of a sudden, father and her other versions started smiling as soon as they took a bite of Shirou's food. And I kid you not, I swear that they had a pink and yellow aura around them with flowers on the side as well!"

The knights were surprised at Mordred's explanation.

"Wow. To think that he can cook so well to create such a reaction to our king beside the archer at the counter...he must be formidable."

"Yeah. Anyway, what about you guys? Have you seen the reactions my father and her versions has when she's with Shirou?"

Lancelot then stated his experience. "Well...I have. It happened a few days ago. I happened to see Shirou with the lancer version of our king, and you won't believe what our king asked him to do.

"What?"

"The lancer version of our king...asked Shirou...to give her...a massage..."

That was when Mordred, Gawain, Tristan, Gareth, and Bedivere dropped their mouths in shock. "What?!"

"Yes. You heard me correctly."

"And the result?" Gawain asked.

"Well...let's just say...she was really satisfied with the massage. A bit too satisfied if I may have to say."

"What do you mean?" Tristan asked.

Lancelot let out a sigh before saying, "Her face showed an expression that I have never seen before."

"What was it?" Bedivere asked.

"Pure joy."

The rest of the knights of the round were just speechless at Lancelot's answer. Their king, who doesn't show any emotion, had a face of pure joy when Shirou gave her a massage?

It was something they never heard of.

"And that wasn't the end."

Mordred, Gawain, Tristan, Gareth, and Bedivere turned their heads at Lancelot. "What do you mean?" they asked.

"Apparently, the lancer alter and ruler versions came in and asked for the same thing as well. And well...the same effects happened on them as well."

"Wow," Tristan said.

"Yeah. Anyway, how about you Gawain?"

"Well...just yesterday, I saw Shirou training the lily version of our king."

"And what happened?" Bedivere asked.

"Let's just say...she's a lot stronger now."

"How can you be sure?" Lancelot asked.

"I had a training spar with her afterwards to see if she got stronger."

"And what happened?" Mordred asked.

"Well...she beat me."

The rest of the knights were surprised at Gawain's statement. "Wow."

"Yeah. Anyway, what about you Tristan?"

"For me, during last week, I saw the alter version of cleaning Shirou up. Apparently, he had some blood on his face during a training session, and guess what? The alter version of our king grabbed a napkin out of nowhere and just wiped the blood stain off his face with it. And to be clear on something, the alter version of our king is ruthless and never shows any hospitality to anyone."

"Wow. Really?"

"Yeah. And what about you Bedivere? Have you seen the interactions?"

"For me, a while ago, I saw Shirou interacting with the archer and rider alter versions of our king. Apparently, they were watching a movie of some sort. During the movie, both versions of our king fell asleep...on his shoulder. And that lasted until the end of the movie."

"Wow," Mordred said. "How about you Gareth?"

"For me, it was seeing Shirou making sweets for the Santa Alter, Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and XX.

"Wow. Anyway, just why are we here waiting?" Bedivere asked.

"Shhh!" Gawain said as he pointed at Shirou leaving the cafeteria. As Shirou began walking down the cafeteria, they then began to come out of their hiding spot and started following Shirou again.

As Shirou walked down the hallway, he felt the same sensation again. "Again...it's that familiar feeling again...and it's getting stronger by the second..."

Eventually, Shirou had enough of that weird feeling on his back and decided to speed his walking pace a bit faster. And yet, the weird feeling he had was still inside of him.

That was when Shirou took a risk and went left in one of the hallways of Chaldea...only to find out that it leads to a dead end.

Shirou mentally cursed himself and tried to turn back but was immediately blocked by the Knights of the Round.

_(Back to the present...)_

Shirou sighed at the situation after thinking about the funny feeling he had earlier. "What kind of situation is this? Isn't this one of those situations you would see on television in dramas and such? And what did I do to get myself in this situation?" he thought as his back was up against the wall as he nervously stared at the knights looming at him. As he looked at the knights looming over him, he noticed that out of them, only Bedivere and Gareth were the only ones looking at him in pure curiosity. Everyone else had a angry face on him.

After a few minutes of being in this awkward situation, Shirou decides to end the silence. "Um...excuse me, but what is this situation?" he asked.

Bedivere smiled apologetically. "Sorry, but due to everyone's curiosity and Merlin telling us, we uh...well..."

"We want to know what's the relationship between you and our king," Gawain stated.

"Yeah! What's the deal between you and father!?" Mordred asked.

"Do you plan on doing something to our king?" Lancelot asked menancingly.

"What are your intentions towards our king?" Tristan asked sternly.

"How do you know her?" Gareth asked.

Shirou invardly groaned as he now knew why the Knights of the Round suddenly decided to gang up upon him in this situation.

"Damn it Merlin. Why?"

Shirou then gathered up his thoughts and said. "Listen, I don't know what Merlin told you, but I'll tell you this. I will never, ever, hurt Arturia on my own life. I swear. And that includes her other versions as well."

"And how so?" Tristan asked.

"Because I am her scabbard."

At that moment, there was another moment of silence as the knights of the round were processing the information they just received. They couldn't believe that he was worthy enough to carry Avalon, the sheath to Excalibur.

For him to declare something like that...they just couldn't believe it.

After a few minutes, Gawain muttered, "I see...I see..."

Shirou was confused.

"So you're the king's..."

That's when the knights of the round looked at him again and like before, Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, and Mordred were looking at him with eyes of seriousness and Bedivere and Gareth were looking at him with eyes of pure curiosity.

They were about to interrogate him even further...until they all felt an aura way too familiar behind them.

Or rather, familiar auras.

"You guys..." a bunch of familiar voices moaned.

The knights slowly turned around, knowing who was behind them. As such, they saw Arturia, Arturia Alter, Arturia Lily, Lancer Arturia, Lancer Arturia Alter, Ruler Arturia, Archer Arturia, Rider Arturia Alter, Santa Alter Arturia, Mysterious Heroine X, Mysterious Heroine X Alter, and Mysterious Heroine XX standing behind with faces of anger on them.

And they were not happy with the behavior they displayed in front of Shirou.

"DO NOT TOUCH SHIROU!" they exclaimed.

And then all the Arturias unleashed hell upon the Knights of the Round...

_(Minutes later...)_

Mordred, Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Gareth, and Bedivere were sitting in seiza form after they received their punishment from the Arturias. Shirou on the other hand was standing beside the Arturias awkwardly as he watched the Knights of the Round being scolded.

"Okay. Who dared to bring out Shirou while I was away?!" Arturia yelled.

"But my king, we did that for your sake-" Gawain tried to explain, but was cut off.

"Shut up! Where did you even heard the story about Shirou?!" Arturia Alter asked.

"From Merlin," Lancelot said.

All the Arturias shouted in fury after hearing that statement. "MERLIIIIIN!"

_(Meanwhile in another place in Chaldea...)_

Merlin suddenly stiffened.

"Hm? Merlin, what's wrong?" Caster Gilgamesh asked.

"For some reason, I feel like I should hide somewhere far away later."

Caster Gilgamesh looked confused at Merlin's statement.

_(Back to where Shirou, the Arturias, and the Knights of the Round are...)_

"So basically, Merlin told all of you about our interactions with Shirou and all of you wanted to find out what relationship we have with Shirou. Is that correct?" Lancer Arturia asked.

"Yes, my liege," Bedivere said.

"But why?" Arturia lily asked.

"Well-" Tristan said, but Mordred cut him off.

"Because whenever you're with him, you would show a different side of you that we never seen before father! I mean seriously, when you're around him, you were actually smiling for once, and it was genuine! And not only that, but you would always engage in activities with him every time! You were looking so happy whenever you were doing something with Shirou. It got all of us curious seeing why you would act like this when you're with him! What's your relationship with him! And what does he mean he's your scabbard?!" Mordred exclaimed.

Mordred then calmed down for a few minutes after her rant/question, letting Arturia answer her question.

"Well...Shirou was my master during the fifth holy grail war."

The knights were shocked at this. "What?!" they exclaimed.

"Yes. You all heard me correctly. Shirou was my master during the fifth holy grail war in Fuyuki. During my time in Fuyuki, me and Shirou would go up against multiple servants that were summoned during the war. One of them was the king of heroes, Gilgamesh.

"Really?" The knights said in surprise.

"Yes. In fact, it was that war that brought us together...and made us fell in love together."

The knights gasped at what Arturia said.

"Wow," Mordred said. "Wait, just why is Shirou your scabbard?"

"It's because he's the current bearer of Avalon. What's more, he is me and my other versions' consort. So hold him in higher regard than even Guinevere, as so do I and my other versions."

Everyone was in thought at what Arturia said, especially Mordred. "Higher than the queen? Okay, he may be the bearer of father's scabbard and father's former master, but what's so special about him that makes father...wait...could this mean..."

Mordred then asked Arturia one question that shocked everyone.

"A question my king."

"Speak."

"If we were to treat Shirou as well as, or greater than Guinevere, that would require us to treat him on the level of royalty. What's more, if he is truly yours and your alternate versions' consort...does that make him our new queen?"

That's when everything went into chaos as everyone was trying to process what Mordred just said, especially Shirou.

"W-What?!" Shirou exclaimed.

Silence occurred for a few seconds until Arturia said her answer.

"I-I suppose?"

Then the other Arturias said their answers.

"I agree," Arturia Alter said.

"S-Same," Arturia Lily said.

"Me too," Lancer Arturia said.

"I agree with my counterpart," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Same as well," Ruler Arturia said.

"I wouldn't mind," Archer Arturia said.

"Me neither," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"Same," Santa Alter Arturia said.

"I'm not even a king, and I'm on-board with this as well," Mysterious Heroine X said.

"As well am I," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Me too," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

"Wait! Don't I-" Shirou tried to say but was interrupted.

"ALL HAIL QUEEN SHIROU!" Gawain exclaimed.

"ALL HAIL QUEEN SHIROU!" Bedivere, Lancelot, Tristan, Gareth, and Mordred followed.

Shirou sighed at what just transpired. Just earlier, he was just escorting Arturia down to the cafeteria, and now he was being hailed as a queen by the Knights of the Round.

"Just what has my life become now..." he thought.

"Wait," Mordred suddenly said, stopping the chanting. "If Shirou's the new queen...does that make him my mother or stepmother?"

Everyone went silent again for a few minutes after hearing Mordred's question.

"EHHHHHH!?" Everyone beside Mordred exclaimed.

And just like that, Emiya Shirou became "Queen Shirou"...and possibly Mordred's mother or stepmother...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update 4/29/20: Added Gareth because I forgot lol.


	3. Mystic Code Shenanigans

"Mystic code testing? Me?"

That was the question Shirou asked Da Vinci after she brought him over to her workshop.

"Yes. Do you know what a mystic code is?" Da Vinci asked.

"Yes. Mystic codes are special items that help Ritsuka in his quest to restore humanity. They give him certain skills and power bonuses as well."

"Yes. However, it's not limited just to Ritsuka as well."

"What do you mean?" Shirou asked.

"Shirou, you and other servants can equip mystic codes as well."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Now come on, I need you to test these new mystic codes out!" Da Vinci exclaimed happily.

Shirou sighed at the situation he was in. Earlier, he was just walking in Chaldea's hallway and suddenly, Da Vinci popped out of nowhere and dragged him to her workshop.

"All right. Just what mystic codes are we testing out today? Hope it isn't something really heavy or something really extravagant or something embarrassing."

"Oh! It's nothing like that actually. Rather, they're really light."

"Really?"

"Yeah! If anything, mystic codes look like regular clothes or suits. They're not like heavy armor that you see knights wearing. They can also take in the form of items as well."

"Huh."

"Yeah. Anyway, just let me just make the mystic code from my crafting table. I'll be right back!" Da Vinci exclaimed happily, excited to create a new mystic code for Shirou to test out and show it to him. While Da Vinci was crafting the mystic code, Shirou waited in a corner of her workshop.

_"Wow. It's only been a few months since I've arrived in Chaldea, and yet trouble seems to always find me. First was meeting Saber and her alternative selves, multiple Tohsakas, Sakuras, Illyas, Luvia who's apparently a pseudo-servant vessel to a goddess, a girl named Miyu who happened to be my little sister from another universe, my alternate future self, an alternate version of dad, Illya's birth mother, Fuji-nee who's also a pseudo-servant vessel although the outfit she was wearing looks like she's in animal pajamas, Rider, the lancer that killed me once, and Gilgamesh. Then came the time where I met the Knights of the Round and was appointed as "Queen Shirou" and apparently Mordred's mother or stepmother. And now this..."_

Shirou sighed as he tried to make his mind relax from all the thoughts he went through.

_"Honestly, at this point, I'm not even sure if any day in my life will ever be normal...or if my life didn't have any sense of normality to begin with..."_

"And...it's done!" Da Vinci exclaimed happily.

As Da Vinci did the final touches on the mystic code, she then brought it out for Shirou to see. As Shirou looked at it, he was surprised at how it looked.

Why? Simple. The mystic code Da Vinci crafted looked like the clothes he wore in Fuyuki when he was still alive. The mystic code Da Vinci was showing was Shirou's old white and navy-blue long-sleeves baseball jersey t-shirt with the navy-blue covering the sleeves and shoulders, blue jeans, a white and black jacket with the black covering the sleeves and the shoulders, and a pair of white and black shoes.

It was like looking back a distant memory, one that he went through a long time before...

Before he became a heroic spirit...

"Uh...Da Vinci...did you came up with the design?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Because the mystic code that you just created happened to look like my old clothes that I used to wear when I was still a human."

"Really?!" Da Vinci exclaimed, surprised that she managed to create something from Shirou's past without knowing. "So...you don't like it?"

"Huh? Oh no, it's not that. It's just that...well...it brings back memories from my past."

"I see. Anyways, try it on."

"Alright."

Shirou then took off the clothes he was wearing, which was his red sash, his white kimono, his armored pants, his steeled toe boots, and put on the familiar clothes he knew before.

He still kept the katana though.

"Well, how does it feel?" Da Vinci asked, waiting for the results in anticipation.

Shirou smiled. "It fits perfectly."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Well then, you can leave now."

"Wait? Don't I need to take it off first?"

"Not yet. I need feedback for the mystic code, so for the rest of the day, just wear it. By tomorrow, return to my workshop, give me the feedback, and I'll see if it needs some adjusting or not."

"I see. Well, I'll be off then," Shirou said as he left Da Vinci's workshop.

"Oh boy, I hope that mystic code of mine doesn't attract people...especially the ones that already knew Shirou..." Da Vinci thought as she went back to work.

After Shirou got out of Da Vinci's workshop, he began to head towards the cafeteria. After all, one of his jobs in Chaldea is to feed a bunch of hungry lions.

"Man, it's been a while since I wore these clothes," Shirou thought happily. "Can't wait to show these to Saber, Tohsaka, Sakura, and Illya."

As he was walking down the hallway, a certain blue lancer recognized him and called him out.

"Hey kid!"

Shirou turned around to see Cu Chulainn, carrying his spear and wearing the same blue tights that he saw many years ago.

"You're...lancer."

"Hey! I have a name you know! The name's Cu Chulainn! Anyway, how's Chaldea for you?"

"It's crazy here. Apparently Saber has a bunch of alternate versions of herself, Rin's apparently a goddess and has alternate versions of herself as well, Sakura's also a goddess and has multiple versions of herself as well, Illya's has alternate versions of herself, there's a girl called Miyu who's apparently my little sister from an alternate universe, Luvia's apparently a goddess, an alternate version of my old man is here, a version of Illya's mom is here apparently, my caretaker is here, Rider's here, Archer's here, and Gilgamesh is here and still hates me."

"Wow."

"Yeah, and that's not even the weirdest thing I've ever seen."

"Really? Then what is?"

Shirou let out a sigh before saying it. "Being called "Queen Shirou" by the Knights of the Round."

For a moment, Cu was stunned at what Shirou just said. After a few moments of silence, Cu started laughing like crazy.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! No way! They called you "Queen Shirou?!" Just how?! I mean, that's something I would never see in my entire life! Just what did you do to earn that title?!"

Shirou let out a sigh before continuing. "I blame Merlin for that. Apparently, he blabbed about my relationship with Saber to the Knights of the Round. Then the knights tried to interrogate me and then Saber and her alternate versions found out about it, and the rest is history."

"Wow. Sounds like bad luck man!" Cu said in fits of laughter.

"Yeah. You know, I'm surprised that news about this hasn't reached to everyone in Chaldea, consider what Merlin could do at a time like this."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Saber would always tell me that he would make pranks on people."

"Wow. By the way, I just noticed now, but what's with the new outfit you're wearing? It looks like your old clothes from the last time I met you in Fuyuki."

"Huh? Oh, it's a new mystic code Da Vinci wants me to try out."

"Really? Judging by the looks of it, she seems to have copied the design perfectly."

"No kidding. Anyways, I got to go. Bye. And also, don't tell anyone about this," Shirou said as he started walking again.

"Hmm...so mystic codes can look like that huh...might as well ask Da Vinci for a new mystic code later..."

As Shirou arrived at the cafeteria, he paused for a moment and gathered his thoughts. "I hope things don't get awkward...like what happened when I met my altered future self...

_(A few days earlier...)_

Shirou and EMIYA were preparing food in the cafeteria, when a certain man came into the room.

That person was EMIYA Alter, and he was shocked to see his younger self here of all places.

As EMIYA Alter and Shirou looked at each other, a few thoughts went into their minds.

_"WHY IS MY YOUNGER SELF HERE?!"_

_"Who's that guy and why does he look like Archer?"_

After a few minutes of staring at each other, EMIYA Alter eventually left the cafeteria in a rush.

"Who was that?" Shirou asked.

"Apparently my altered self," EMIYA replied.

"EHHHH?!"

_"Back to the present...)_

"Well...here goes nothing..." Shirou thought as he opened the doors...and was instantly stared at by the people in there.

Why? Because inside the cafeteria was Arturia and her alternate selves, Ishtar, her rider version, and Ereshkigal, Parvati, BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, Illya and her alternate selves, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar man EMIYA, EMIYA alter, Medusa, Medea, and Archer Gilgamesh.

And their reactions were just crazy. The Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Luvia, Miyu, and Medusa looked at him in wonder, EMIYA and EMIYA Alter did a spitake after seeing their younger self wearing the old clothes they used to wear before they became counter guardians, Medea surprised seeing the boy once again, Taiga didn't seemed to have any reaction to it, and Archer Gilgamesh looking even more furious as him as the mystic code Shirou was wearing reminded him of the time he lost during the fifth holy grail war.

"Shirou...those clothes..." Arturia and her other versions muttered.

"Those clothes...I thought I would never get to see them again..." Ishtar, her rider version, and Ereshkigal muttered.

"Sempai...that outfit of yours..." Parvati, BB, Passionlip, and Meltlilith said.

"Onii-chan..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu muttered.

"Shero..." Astraea muttered, thinking how good he looks in those clothes.

"Shirou..." Medusa said, not expecting to see those clothes again.

"Boy..." Medea muttered, surprised to see him again.

"Faker..." Archer Gilgamesh muttered in anger with flashbacks of his defeat coming back to him.

Taiga was the only one who didn't seem to have any reaction.

For a while, silence was in the air...untill EMIYA asked Shirou a question.

"You...you...where did you get those clothes?" he asked nervously.

"Huh? Da Vinci crafted them for me. She said she wanted me to try out a new mystic code she had in mind. Why?"

EMIYA mentally groaned and facepalmed himself as he was looking at his younger self wearing his old clothes. "JUST HOW DID DA VINCI MANAGED TO RECREATE MY OLD CLOTHES AS A MYSTIC CODE?! OR BETTER YET, HOW THE HELL DID SHE KNOW ABOUT THE DESIGN OF MY OLD CLOTHES?! THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!"

Meanwhile, EMIYA Alter was having similar thoughts to his counterpart as well. "Okay, I'm so done with this. My mind can't take any more of my past self, and I'm already broken by Kiara. Somebody please finish me out my misery."

Shirou noticed the uncomfortable faces EMIYA and EMIYA Alter had on their faces and asked, "You two okay over there?"

"Yeah...we're fine..." EMIYA muttered.

"Just...relieving some...memories..." EMIYA Alter muttered.

"Anyways...you want me to help with the kitchen?" Shirou asked.

"Suit yourself."

As Shirou prepared to make lunch for the servants, he was glad that nothing bad happened when everyone saw him wear the old clothes he used to wear.

Little he didn't know that the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia were staring him the whole entire time when he was making lunch...

And they had a plan because of that...

_(The next day...)_

Shirou arrived at Da Vinci's workshop, ready to return the mystic code. However, as he went inside of her workshop, he noticed a pile of mystic codes in one corner of the room. As he arrived closer, he noticed that Da Vinci was working at her desk.

"Uhh...Da Vinci?" Shirou asked softly as he didn't want to disrupt her.

"Hmm? Oh Shirou! Hold on a moment! Let me finish adding this one piece here!" Da Vinci exclaimed while finishing her work. "Come on...and...there! That should do it!"

As Da Vinci finished added the last piece of her newest work, she then got out of from her chair and came up to him. "So Shirou, what are you doing here?"

"I came here to return the mystic code you gave me. Remember?"

"Oh yeah. How was it?" Da Vinci asked.

"For the most part, there was no problem with it. Although for some reason, Saber and her alternate selves, Rin and her alternative self, Sakura and her alternative selves, Illya and her alternate selves, Miyu, Luvia, and Rider were staring at it for a while, Archer and his altered version did a spitake after seeing it, Caster seemed surprised although I think it's because she didn't expect to see me, Cu and Fuji-nee seems to not mind, and Gilgamesh...seems to hate it. Besides that, nothing went wrong with it."

"I see..." Da Vinci muttered.

"Hm? Is there something wrong?"

Da Vinci let out a sigh. "Well...it's a long story..."

_(Yesterday...)_

Da Vinci was in her workshop working on a new creation after she had made the mystic code which was Shirou's old clothes. As she was working, she noticed that someone has been knocking on the door. She then took a temporary break and went to greet the guest.

Only to see a bunch of Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia on her front door.

"Uhh...can I help all of you?" Da Vinci asked.

"Yes," they said.

Da Vinci then lead them inside her workshop, so she could figure out why a group this big was at her front door. "So...what can I do for you?"

The girls exclaimed, "PLEASE MAKE MORE MYSTIC CODES FOR SHIROU TO WEAR!"

Da Vinci was dumbfounded by the girls' request. "I'm sorry, but what?"

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's why there's a pile of mystic codes that look like clothes in that corner over there." Da Vinci said after explaining her situation. "Apparently, the girls that knew you were so mesmerized by you wearing your old clothes that they wanted you to wear mystic codes based off designs that the girls had in mind."

Shirou was baffled at this. He didn't realize how much of an effect the mystic code Da Vinci gave him had this much of an effect.

"So...does that mean I have to wear all of those mystic codes?" Shirou asked as he pointed at the pile of mystic codes.

"Yes. And you can't refuse."

Shirou sighed at this. He wasn't going to catch a break.

"Okay. I'll do it."

Da Vinci smiled at his answer. "Excellent! Now you're going to try each one of them. And remember, you need to give feedback on all of them."

"Okay."

Shirou then proceeded to grab the first mystic code out of the pile. The first mystic code he pulled out happened to look like Homurahara Academy's uniform. "No way. Da Vinci managed to replicate my old high school uniform? Now this is literally a trip down memory lane. Pretty sure this was Saber's, Rin's, Sakura's, Illya's, and Rider's idea." Shirou thought as he was putting the mystic code on.

"Well, how's this one?" Da Vinci asked.

"It's fine actually. This one is also from my past. It's my old high school uniform."

"Really? How does it feel?"

"Honestly, it still fits somehow," Shirou said with a smile. "I also do feel a slight power boost from it as well."

"That's great. Now let's move onto the next one."

Shirou then took off the mystic code and took another one from the pile. As he grabbed it, he took a better look. It was a butler outfit. "This one was definitely Luvia's idea," he thought as he put the mystic code on.

"How's this one Shirou?"

"This one is fine, although it's a little tight. You might need to loosen this a bit. Also, I feel a little bit more agile in this."

"I see."

"Yeah. Anyways, onto the next one." Shirou then took off the butler mystic code and grabbed another mystic code, which resembled a certain robe from a certain movie. As he put on the robe, he noticed that on the belt was a certain object from the same certain movie.

"This object...it can't be..." Shirou thought as he grabbed it and took a closer look at it. However, when he noticed a button on the object, he pressed it and then a red energy beam came out of the top of the object, surprising Shirou.

"You got to be kidding me..."

"Shirou, is there something wrong?"

"Hm? Oh, nothing's wrong," he said as he deactivated the object. "Anyways, the robes feel comfortable, although one question does pop into my mind."

"What is it?"

"Da Vinci, did you get this mystic code design from a certain movie?"

"Nope. Mysterious Heroine X Alter requested this."

"Huh. Didn't know that." Shirou then took off the robe mystic code and grabbed another mystic code from the pile. This time, the mystic code Shirou picked up was a chef's outfit, complete with a chef's hat and a pan as well. As he wore it, he wondered, "Just how many mystic codes did Da Vinci made? Or better yet, why did Saber and her alternate versions, Rin and her alternate version, Sakura and her alternate versions, Illya and her alternate versions, Miyu, and Luvia asked Da Vinci to do this? Or why did Da Vinci choose me to test out that mystic code yesterday?"

As Shirou was deep in his thoughts, he didn't notice Da Vinci was calling out to him. "Shirou!" Da Vinci called out.

"Hm?"

"What do you think?"

"Oh, the mystic code? It's fine. I do like the colors as well. I also do feel a slight boost in health as well too."

Shirou then took the chef mystic code off and proceeded to grab another one from the pile. This time, the one he picked out looked like clothes from Shinjuku. It was a black jacket with a red shirt, black pants, and black shoes. It also came with a cross shaped necklace as well.

"Well, how's this one?" Da Vinci asked.

"This one feels fine as well. Not only that, but I also feel agile as well," Shirou said as he moved his body around. He then took off the mystic code and picked up the last mystic code from the pile.

However, the last mystic code was different...

Because it was a pair of swimming trunks with the same design as his old jacket.

"Uh...Da Vinci...is this the last mystic code from the pile?" Shirou asked while looking at the swimming trunks."

"Yes. Why?"

"Well...all I see is a pair of swimming trunks."

"Yes. That's the last mystic code you need to wear."

Shirou was baffled at how straight forward her answer was. "You got to be kidding me..." he said.

"Hey! At least it's the last one from the pile! And plus, why are you complaining about it anyway? You're wearing a red sash, armored pants, and boots every day you know! And don't try to make an excuse with the white kinomo as well. Everyone can practically see your body you know, especially the abs." Da Vinci argued.

Shirou shut his mouth after hearing Da Vinci's explaination.

"Fine..." he muttered. Shirou then took off the mystic code and wore the swimming trunks mystic code.

"Well? How is it?" Da Vinci asked while Shirou was putting them on.

"It seems fine...although I don't feel anything different from this one," Shirou replied.

"Is that so? Huh. Anyways, we're done with all of them!"

Shirou sighed in relief as they were done with the examining of the mystic codes. He then took off the mystic code and put on his normal outfit.

He was glad that this was over.

"Well then, thanks for your corporation! You can leave now," Da Vinci said.

"Okay. I'll be going then," Shirou said before leaving the room, leaving Da Vinci alone in her workshop.

"Phew. That took way too long. To think that I would have to make a bunch of mystic codes just to get Shirou to play dress up, and the fact that I actually placed a hidden camera in my workshop because the girls want to see this. Maybe I shouldn't also have done the girls' request to place a hidden camera here so that they can see Shirou in multiple mystic codes..." Da Vinci thought as she looked back at her work.

Meanwhile, in another room in Chaldea, all the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia were watching the whole thing, and they fainted immediately after seeing Shirou wearing all of those mystic codes, especially the last one...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to be busy for a while, because college decided to drop a bunch of work on me, so expect slow updates.


	4. Giving Ritsuka Advice

"Master? Are you okay? You seemed a bit down today," Shirou asked as he was escorting Ritsuka to his room.

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine," Ritsuka replied tiredly. "It's just probably your imagination."

Shirou looked at him suspiciously. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm just really tired right now."

"Well, if you say so."

Ritsuka then went ahead of Shirou and went into his room, leaving Shirou with a few questions on his mind. "Wonder what is up with master today..."

Meanwhile, Ritsuka slammed himself on the bed after a long day of doing a quest. He was exhausted as the quest took its toll on him.

However, he wasn't feeling just exhausted.

He was also depressed, not at the quest.

But rather at himself.

Because of his own weakness.

_"Am I too weak to be a master of Chaldea? Is there anything else that I can do beside summoning servants?"_

That was the thing that was on his mind as he thought back on what happened on that quest.

_(Flashback to earlier...)_

"Okay, I think that's all of them," Shirou said as he took his katana out from a bandit.

"Is that so?" Mashu asked.

"I don't sense anymore enemies around here, so we should be good."

Shirou then cleaned the blood off his katana as he looked at the corpes that fell to his sword. Earlier, Ritsuka accepted a quest involving a group of bandits having access to a dangerous weapon that could change history itself. To prevent that from happening, Ritsuka formed a group with Mashu and Shirou and rayshifted to an area where the bandits and the weapon were nearby.

After Ritsuka and his group found the bandits along with the weapon, they proceeded to fight the bandits, and seemingly killed them all.

Or so as they thought...

"Okay then, lets destroy the weapon," Ritsuka said.

However, out of nowhere, a bandit snuck up behind Ritsuka and placed a dagger in front of his throat.

"Master!" Shirou exclaimed.

"Senpai!" Mashu exclaimed.

"Don't move! Or else I'll slash this kid's throat!" the bandit exclaimed threateningly.

While the bandit may look like he had the upper hand in using Ritsuka as a hostage, in truth he was in a state of panic. After all, he just did see his comrades getting slaughtered by Shirou and Mashu. Within his state of panic, he hoped to use Ritsuka as mean to escape from the bloodbath he just witnessed and not be a victim of it as well.

"Okay! If you want this brat alive, drop your weapons!" the bandit exclaimed.

"And then what?" Shirou asked.

"Isn't it obvious?! I'm taking this brat with me as a hostage!"

Mashu was in a loss of words. "W-What do we do Shirou-san?!"

Shirou stayed calm.

"D-Didn't you hear me?! Drop your weapons!" the bandit exclaimed nervously.

Trying to calm the situation, both Mashu and Shirou dropped their weapons.

However, Shirou had a plan in mind. As he dropped his katana, he said two words.

**"Trace on."**

As soon as he said that, a black bow along with a twisted sword appeared in his hands. He then assumed into a shooting pose.

This made Ritsuka, Mashu, and the bandit surprised immediately.

"A bow?!" Ritsuka and Mashu thought.

"W-Wait! Don't you care about the kid?! I'll kill him you know!"

"S-Shirou-san! W-What are you doing?!" Mashu nervously exclaimed.

Shirou then telepathically talked to Ritsuka.

_"Master, are you alright?"_

_"Uh Shirou, are you okay with the bow? Because we're in a tricky situation here."_

_"Relax. Trust me. If you're scared, just close your eyes."_

Ritsuka closed his eyes and hoped that Shirou was able to defuse the situation.

"Hey! Are you even listening?! I'll kill this brat you know!"

However, in a swift moment, Shirou released the string, shooting the twisted sword right into the bandit's face accurately, leaving Ritsuka no harm. The bandit's dead body slumped backwards, falling into the ground.

Both Ritsuka and Mashu were amazed with the display of power Shirou has just released on the bow.

After all, he's a saber servant, yet he can use the bow as well.

"I'm sorry master. I didn't know there was one more bandit hiding over there. Are you all right?" Shirou asked.

Ritsuka was stunned.

"Master?"

"Eh? Oh, y-yes,"Ritsuka said after he snapped out of his daze.

Shirou let out a smile, knowing that his master was safe. "Okay then, let's destroy that weapon."

As Ritsuka, Mashu, and Shirou proceed to find the weapon, Ritsuka was having multiple thoughts going in his head throughout the quest. However, they were all related because of one thing.

The moment he became a hostage and couldn't do anything about it.

_(Back to the present...)_

"How did I not see that bandit coming? I mean seriously, I faced singularities scarier than this. Was I really that careless? If it wasn't for Shirou's pinpoint accuracy, things would be different than now. Am I this weak? Have I not changed at all?" Ritsuka thought as he rolled over on his bed and looked at the ceiling. "What should I do?"

After a few minutes of thinking, Ritsuka finally got his answer.

_"Guess I'll hit the training room tomorrow and maybe learn a few skills over there."_

Ritsuka then went back to sleep.

_(The next day...)_

Mashu was walking around Chaldea, looking for Ritsuka. Earlier, she tried to wake him up, but he wasn't in his room. She searched everywhere but couldn't find him.

Desperate, she went into Chaldea's summoning room, hoping to find him there.

Sadly, she didn't find him, but she did find Da Vinci, who's currently working on something.

"Oh, Mashu. Can I help you with something?" Da Vinci said.

"Yes. Have you seen senpai?"

"Ritsuka huh? Hm...last time I saw him, he was here earlier."

"Where is he now?"

"He said he was going to the training room, and he was in such a hurry too."

"Really? How come?"

"Apparently he said he wanted to get stronger."

"Really? What's the occasion?"

"I don't know actually. Do you have any idea?"

"Who knows. Do you?"

"Nope. Anyways, thanks Da Vinci," Mashu said as she left the summoning room and headed towards the training room. As she arrived at the training room, she saw Ritsuka on the treadmill running nonstop. Not only that, but the fact that he is sweating a lot means that he's been there for quite a while. "S-Senpai?"

"Huh? Oh, hey...Mashu!" Ritsuka said while breathing on the treadmill.

"Senpai...are you training?"

"Yeah!"

"But why?"

"Isn't it obvious? To get...stronger...of course!" Ritsuka huffed while running on the treadmill.

"Huh...mind if I join?" Mash asked.

"Sure."

Mashu then went on the vacant treadmill next to Ritsuka, powered it up, and began running as well. As she began running, she noticed something on Ritsuka's treadmill.

The amount of time Ritsuka spent on the treadmill was long. In fact, too long.

And it freaked her out a little bit.

"Uh...Sempai...just how long have you been on the treadmill?" Mashu asked.

"Eh? Oh, about a few hours I guess," Ritsuka replied. "Why?"

"Well...check the amount of time spent on your treadmill."

Ritsuka followed Mashu's request and checked the amount of time he spent on the treadmill.

He spent three hours on the treadmill.

"Oh," was all Ritsuka just said after being on the treadmill before focused on running again.

"S-Sempai! Are you alright!?"

"Huh? I'm fine. Why?"

"You've been running for three hours straight! Haven't you taken a break yet?"

"Yeah. About 10 minutes earlier."

Mashu let out a sigh of relief. At least he wasn't overworking himself.

"But seriously though, are you okay with this?"

"Relax. I'll be fine."

Later on in the day, after he did his running on the treadmill, he then proceeded to hit the sandbags multiple times until it was lunchtime, and even then, he goes back into the training room until dinner occurred.

And even after that, he continues to train...

_(A few weeks later...)_

"Do you think something is wrong with master today?" Shirou asked Mashu in the cafeteria.

"You think so too Shirou-san?" Mashu replied.

"Yeah. Recently he's been going into the training room every day in his free time and every time when its either breakfast, lunch, or dinner time, he would eat really fast and just head back towards the training room."

"Really?"

"Yeah, and that's not only it."

"What do you mean?"

Shirou let out a sigh. "Earlier, I saw something drop out of Master's pocket, and you wouldn't believe what it was."

"What was it?"

"It was his training regime, and honestly, the contents of the training regime is just too crazy."

"What do you mean?"

"Apparently his training regime consisted of 100 push ups, 100 sit ups, 100 squats, then a 10 kilometer run on the treadmill."

"What?!" Mashu exclaimed.

"Yeah, and he's been doing that for a few weeks now."

"Ehhhh?!"

"Yeah."

"W-Why though? Why is senpai doing this crazy training regime? Do you have any idea what could possibly make him do something like this?"

Shirou gave it a long thought but came up with nothing. "Sorry, but I got nothing. Do you?"

Mashu shook her head. "Me neither."

"Then shall we ask master then?"

"S-Sure!"

Shirou and Mashu then left the cafeteria and went to the training room to see if Ritsuka was still there. As they arrived, they saw Ritsuka at the sandbags, punching them nonstop.

"Uh master?" Shirou said.

"Huh? Oh, hey Mashu, Shirou."

"Master, don't you think that you're overworking yourself with this training regime of yours?"

"What? Of course not! If anything, I feel better than before!"

"You sure about that?"

"Yes! Now, I need to work on the next part-" Ritsuka exclaimed but was cut off as he suddenly falling over. "What the...my body...why don't I feel so good all of a sudden...?" he thought as fell to the ground before passing out.

"Master/Senpai!" Mashu and Shirou exclaimed.

_(A few hours later...)_

"Mnnnnngh...wha?" Ritsuka said while waking up.

"Senpai! Oh, thank the root that you're awake!" Mashu exclaimed in relief.

"Wha...what? W-Where am I?"

"You're in the medical room. Apparently, you passed out in the training room."

"I see. Did you and Shirou brought me over here?"

"Yes."

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Mashu, I'm sorry for passing out in the training room."

"It's okay senpai, although I want to ask you a question," Mashu replied.

"What is it?"

"Why are you doing something like this all of a sudden?"

"Well...to get stronger of course."

"And why?"

Ritsuka didn't say anything to that question.

"Senpai, please tell me," Mashu said with a pout.

Ritsuka sighed as Mashu unleashed her cute pouting face. By the root he knows that he can't resist that face of hers. "All right. Mashu, you want to know reason why I've been overworking myself with this crazy training regime, right?"

Mashu nodded in reply.

"Well...it's because of the quest that happened a while ago."

"The one with the bandits and the weapon?"

"Yes. That one."

"What about it?"

"Well...let's just say...I was frustrated at myself."

"For what?"

"For letting my guard down and letting myself being a hostage."

"Aw senpai, don't get so down about that."

"It's not just that though. I'm also frustrated at my own weakness. By my own inability to help my friends and servants. It feels like I haven't changed this whole time. Not only that, but after looking at Shirou's display of power, I couldn't help but feel weak at him. Not to mention the fact that he used to be a magus until his death. Do you think he came from a powerful line of magus since he was a magus during his time when he was alive?"

"You're wrong about that part," A voice said from the doorway.

Ritsuka and Mashu jumped at the voice and turned their heads to see who was at the doorway. "S-Shirou?!" they excalimed.

"Yeah. I came by to check on master. Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah."

"Good. So, I've heard that the reason why you've been pushing yourself with that training regime was that you felt yourself as weak correct?"

"Y-Yes."

"And you think that I came from a powerful line of magus?"

"Y-Yeah."

"Well Master...to tell you the truth...I'm not from a powerful line of Magus."

"Really?"

"Yeah. If anything, I'm probably a third-rate magus who can only do projection and reinforcement. Maybe second-rate at best too."

"Huh. Who taught you magecraft then?"

"My adpotive father. And even then, I had to learn projection and reinforcement on my own after he died."

Ritsuka and Mashu were shocked at what Shirou just said. He stated that he was a third-rate magus like Ritsuka who only knows two types of magecraft: projection and reinforcement.

"Let me tell you a piece of advice master. There is no definite definition of the words "strong and weak." Those two words have multiple meanings, and those meanings can be defined in many ways more than one. You are strong in your own way, Mashu is strong in her own way, and I'm strong in my own way. The reversal can be applied to us too. Don't let the past drag you down. Instead, use that experience to live for the future. Do you get it?"

Ritsuka and Mashu were in awe at what Shirou just said, especially Ritsuka.

"I think I get it now. So basically, I'm not weak. Rather I have my own type of strength correct?"

Shirou smiled. "Yes. Now if you will excuse me, I got to go back to the cafeteria to prepare dinner. See you later," he said before leaving the room.

"Wow. Didn't expect Shirou to know all of that," Ritsuka said.

"Yeah...by the way senpai," Mashu said.

"What is it Mashu?"

"Where did you get the idea for that training regime?"

"Oh that? I got it from an anime I watched a while ago."

Mashu sighed.


	5. Cooking Lessons With Shirou

"Queen Shirou!"

"Hm? Who said that?" Shirou thought as he turned around to see who said that.

The source of the voice was Gawain, Knight of the Sun, and one of the members of the Knights of the Round.

"Queen Shirou. Oh, thank god I found you," Gawain huffed while catching his breath.

"Uh Gawain, you don't have to call me Queen Shirou. Just Shirou is fine."

"Nonsense! You are our king's and her alternate versions' consort and the bearer of Avalon, so it's only natural that we call you Queen Shirou."

Shirou let out a sigh as he knew that there was no way making the knights stop calling him "Queen Shirou." After all, they were stubborn to the core, and Gawain was the most stubborn out of all of them. "All right, what do you need me for?" Shirou asked.

Gawain took a long breath before exclaiming, "Please teach me the ways of cooking!"

"Huh?" Shirou said.

"Yes, my queen. As hard as it for me to say this, but I wish for your guidance in the ways of cooking."

Shirou was dumbfounded by this. Gawain, the knight of the sun, and one of the knights of the round, is asking Shirou for lessons of cooking.

But why?

That was what Shirou needed, an answer for this sudden request from Gawain.

"Why though?"

"Well..." Gawain said as he thought back to what happened a few days earlier.

_(A few days earlier...)_

Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Gareth, Bedivere, and Mordred were walking in one of Chaldea's hallways. As they were walking, they passed by the cafeteria and overheard the Arturias chatting to each other about a certain topic.

Shirou's cooking.

This got the knights interested immediately, because they know that Shirou's cooking influences the Arturias in which the moment they took one bite of Shirou's food, they immediately smile and have a pink and yellow aura with flowers around them. Originally, they thought it was a one-time thing, but over time, they were proven wrong. While EMIYA's and the other cooks' food are good as well, only Shirou's food seems to have this kind of effect on them every time. They suddenly stopped for a moment and listened to the conversation.

"Uwaaaaaaa. So good," Arturia moaned as she took a bite out of her rice bowl.

"I know right? How long has it been since we had Shirou's cooking?" Arturia Alter asked as she munched on a hamburger.

"Way too long I think," Arturia Lily said as she slurped up her spaghetti.

"You think so?" Archer Arturia said as she took a bite of salmon.

"Nah. She's probably exagerating," Rider Arturia Alter replied as she took a fry into her mouth. "Seriously though, this is delicious."

"No kidding," Santa Alter Arturia said after eating a slice of pizza.

"Yes. Way better than the others. Especially Gawain's cooking. I wish he could cook like Shirou," Lancer Arturia said as she took a bite of her steak.

"No kidding. I mean seriously, his mashed potatoes are not that good," Lancer Arturia Alter said while she took a bite of her fried chicken. "Speaking of which, his mashed potatoes aren't even mashed potatoes."

"I know right? All he does is just mash them up and that's it. Shirou's mashed potatoes however completely different. Shirou doesn't just mash the potatoes, he also adds milk and butter and mixes them on a low heat until its smooth. Then he seasons it with salt and pepper. I swear, Shirou's mashed potatoes are the pinnacle of mashed potatoes." Ruler Arturia said as she sipped on her soup.

"Definitely. No questions asked," Mysterious Herione X said while eating her fried rice.

"Obviously," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said as she took a bite of her onion ring.

"Yeah. No kidding," Mysterious Herioine XX said while slurping on her ramen.

As the Arturias were chatting with each other while eating Shirou's food, the knights were listening the entire conversation and were surprised at what they just said, especially Gawain.

After all, the Arturias did just call Gawain's cooking horrible.

Gawain sulked in despair after hearing the words from the Arturias' mouths. Lancelot, Bedivere, Gareth, and Tristan looked at him in sympathy while Mordred was snickering.

"Uh Gawain...are you okay?" Lancelot asked.

"My king...said my cooking and mashed potatoes was terrible..." Gawain said in sniffles.

"Come on, it can't be that bad..." Tristan said.

"Are you kidding me? After hearing what our king and her alternate versions said, I'm pretty sure what they said must be true."

"Relax, they're probably just kidding. Right Mordred?" Bedivere said.

Mordred was still snickering.

"Mordred?"

"Sorry Gawain...but your cooking...does suck actually," Mordred said with snickers.

"Sorry brother...but she's right," Gareth said.

Gawain's mood went down even further after hearing Mordred's words.

"Great...even Mordred agrees with the king..." Gawain muttered.

Lancelot, Bedivere, Gareth, and Tristan sighed at Gawain's depressed mood while Mordred is still snickering from Gawain's depressed mood. Lancelot then punched Mordred on the head.

"Ow!" she yelped quietly.

"You're making things worse for Gawain, Mordred!" Lancelot said.

"All right, all right, I'll shut up for now," Mordred mumbled.

Lancelot sighed before comforting Gawain. "There, there, everything will be all right."

"How so?" Gawain asked with a sniffle.

"Well...honestly, I have no clue."

Gawain sulked again. It was painful for the knights to see Gawain act like this after hearing the Arturias saying that his cooking sucked. Even Mordred felt a little bad after looking at him in this state.

That's when she decided to help him by offering him advice.

And what she said was unexpected.

"If you're that down in the dumps, then why not ask Queen Shirou for cooking lessons?"

The rest of the knights were in shock at what Mordred just said.

"W-What?"

"You didn't hear me? I said if you're that down in the dumps, then why not ask Queen Shirou for cooking lessons."

Gawain was silent at Mordred's suggestion. Then he said, "Y-You mean, ask the queen himself?"

"Yes, that's what I said."

Gawain had a moment of revelation after hearing Mordred's advice. Taking lessons from Queen Shirou? It sounded like an impossible task for him. In fact, he wasn't even sure that if even Shirou would listen to him.

"But why the queen though? Why not ask the red bowman or Raikou or Boudica or-"

"Because apparently, only Shirou's cooking seems to have that effect on father."

"But-"

"Listen," Tristan interrupted. "Do you want to prove the king wrong?"

"Well yeah, but-"

"Then stop complaining, get that depressed face off, and ask Queen Shirou for cooking lessons the next time you see him! Got that?" Mordred asked.

Gawain thought about what Mordred just said and replied, "Y-Yes!" Then he scurried off, leaving Lancelot, Tristan, and Bedivere surprised at Mordred's words.

"Wow. Didn't expect you to say that Mordred," Lancelot said.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Mordred asked while being annoyed.

"Nothing of harm. I just didn't know that you have a way with words."

"Hey. What can I say? I'm full of surprises," Mordred said with a smirk.

"I can see that," Bedivere said with a smile.

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's why I need your guidance in the culinary world Queen Shirou. Please, you're the only one I asked for," Gawain pleaded.

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "Uhh...so basically the reason why you asked me for my help is because you and the Knights of the Round overheard Saber and her other versions talking about how good my cooking is while they talked about how bad your cooking is and wished that your cooking was as good as mine and you got so depressed that it escalated to the point where Mordred told you to get cooking lessons from me, correct?"

"Yes."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Why ask me though? Aren't there any others?"

"Well...the thing is though that your cooking can only make my king and her other versions' release a visible aura of happiness. No one else can produce such an effect unlike yours."

Shirou was surprised by this. "Huh. Didn't know that."

Gawain sighed. "Anyways, will you help me?"

Shirou thought about it and said, "Well...if that is Arturia's wish, then I can't refuse."

Gawain smiled at Shirou's answer. "Oh, thank you!"

Shirou and Gawain then went into the cafeteria, which was surprisingly empty. As they entered the kitchen, Shirou looked in the ingredients cabinet to see what he could make and teach Gawain at the same time.

Surprisingly, there was just potatoes, milk, and butter.

"You got to be kidding me...since when did Chaldea's cafeteria only have potatoes, butter, and milk? They can't go low on supplies...or can they? Is my bad luck striking me again? Or is the root messing with me again?"

"Uh...Queen Shirou?"

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing," Shirou said as he looked at the potatoes, milk, and butter and was wondering what he could make with these ingredients.

That's when an idea hit him.

Make mashed potatoes.

"Okay, here's the plan. Today, I'll be teaching you how to make mashed potatoes. You'll will be following every step I make. Is that okay with you?" Shirou asked.

"Y-Yes!" Gawain exclaimed.

"Okay," Shirou said as he laid out the potatoes, milk, butter, pots, pans, and potato mashers on the countertop. "First, bring a pot and fill it up with water and salt it. Wait until the water comes to a boil and add the potatoes. Cook it for 15 minutes until they're tender, but still firm, then drain them," he said as the poured some water into the pot, salted it, and placed it on a flame until it started boiling.

Gawain was confused with some of Shirou's words and phrases. "Salt the water? Boil? Tender? Firm? What do they mean Queen Shirou?"

"Salt the water mean to add salt to the water. Boil means when you see the water bubbling, that's when the water is boiling. Tender means easy to chew and firm means a solid structure. Do you get it?," he asked while adding the potatoes to the boiling salted water.

"Oh! Now I get it!" Gawain said in excitement after hearing what the words mean. He then grabbed the pot, filled it with water, salted it, and brought it up to a flame until it started boiling. He then added the potatoes and cooked it for 15 minutes until he drained the water.

Shirou smiled. "Good. Now grab a small saucepan and heat the butter and milk over a low flame until the butter is melted. Using a potato masher or electric beater, slowly blend the milk mixture into the potatoes until smooth and creamy. Season with salt and pepper to taste," he said as he grabbed a small saucepan and heated the butter and milk over a low flame until it melted.

Gawain was confused again. "Season? What does a season have to do with mashed potatoes?"

Shirou sighed. "Season in cooking terms means sprinkle the food with something. For example, salt and pepper," he said as he slowly blended the mixture of milk and butter into the potatoes until it became smooth and creamy and then he seasoned it with black and pepper.

"Oh."

"Yeah. Do you want to write these terms down?"

"Yes please."

Gawain then pulled out a small notepad out of his pocket and started writing the terms and directions down for future reference. He then grabbed the small saucepan and heated the butter and milk over a low flame until the butter melted. Afterwards, he mashed the potatoes using a potato masher and slowly mixed the milk and butter mixture with the potatoes until it became smooth and creamy. Finally, he seasoned it with salt and pepper.

"Well...how's this?" Gawain asked while presenting his mashed potatoes to Shirou.

"Well...let's taste each other's and see," Shirou replied.

Shirou then took a bite out of Gawain's mashed potatoes while Gawain took a bite of Shirou's mashed potatoes. As Gawain took a bite of Shirou's mashed potatoes, his mind went blank over how delicious they were. "T-This is?! This is mashed potatoes?! They're way different from the ones that I used to make! In fact, I'm not even sure that what I used to make can be called mashed potatoes! This is the true mashed potatoes! No wonder why my king and her other versions think my cooking is horrible! They've been eating Queen Shirou's cooking every day and it's divine! Wonder if I should get Bedivere, Lancelot, Tristan, Gareth, Mordred, and Merlin to try Queen Shirou's cooking later..."

"Well, how is it?" Shirou asked.

"It's...it's...it's amazing! I have never tasted such divine cooking as yours before!"

Shirou blushed at Gawain's comment. "Thank you. And your mashed potatoes weren't even that bad as well."

"Really?!" Gawain exclaimed with surprise. "There's nothing wrong with it?!"

"Yeah. In fact, I'm having a hard time to believe about what Arturia said about your cooking. Just how is it that bad?"

Gawain looked embarrassed for a moment and looked down on the floor before saying, "Maybe it's because of how I thought mashed potatoes were made in the past."

"What do you mean by that?" Shirou asked.

Gawain sighed. "Before you taught me how to make mashed potatoes, I thought mashed potatoes were made by just mashing potatoes up."

Shirou was dumbfounded by this. "So...your way of making mashed potatoes is just mashing potatoes up, and that's it?"

"Yes."

"With no seasoning of any kind?"

"Yes."

Shirou mentally groaned in his mind before saying, "Gawain, let me tell you something."

Gawain was listening.

"Just because you're mashing potatoes doesn't mean they're mashed potatoes. Cooking isn't that easy to begin with. There's a process in every recipe, including the small ones as well. Not only that, but you can't just pile up meat and vegetables and cook it and call it a day. You need to season it to give it flavor. Plus, cooking's not that short. It takes time for a dish to be complete. That's what cooking is."

Gawain was stunned at the information Shirou just gave to him.

After all, Shirou just broke his sense of cooking with his own cooking.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

As Shirou and Gawain were chatting, they didn't notice the Arturias and the Knights of the Round coming into the cafeteria, surprising them when they were done with their chat.

"S-Saber?" Shirou said.

"My king? Bedivere? Lancelot? Tristan? Mordred? Gareth? Since when all of you got here?"

"Just a while ago," they all said.

"Because of the smell of the mashed potatoes?"

"Yes," they all said.

Shirou sighed as he should have known that his cooking will always attract the Arturias in one way or another. However, what surprised him was that the Knights of the Round were here as well.

"Well..." Shirou said as he looked at the two pans of mashed potatoes, "Do you want some?"

"YES!" They immediately exclaimed, eager to eat Shirou's cooking.

Shirou sighed again. "Gawain, help me prepare the plates."

"Yes, Queen Shirou," Gawain replied.

Soon, Shirou and Gawain prepared the dishes of mashed potatoes for the Arturias and the Knights of the round. As Shirou and Gawain placed the dishes on the table, the Arturias and the knights started eating the mashed potatoes. While they were eating, the Arturias did their usual reaction while the rest of the knights were in marvel of the mashed potatoes.

'T-This is!" Lancelot said.

"This is mashed potatoes?!" Tristan said.

"These are the best mashed potatoes I've ever had!" Mordred exclaimed.

"I must say, this is quite good Shirou," Bedivere complimented.

"These are good!" Gareth exclaimed.

Shirou smiled. "Thanks, but some of the credit goes to Gawain here."

Everyone was surprised at Shirou's words. "Really?!"

"Yeah. He did some of the cooking here."

Everyone then looked at Gawain with wide eyes. "Q-Queen Shirou taught me how to make this," he said.

There was a moment of silence as everyone tried to process the information they received. After all, they've just heard that Shirou gave Gawain a cooking lesson on mashed potatoes.

And for once, Gawain made good mashed potatoes.

"Just one question. Since when you started learning from Shirou?" the Arturias asked.

Gawain simply replied, "Today. Why?"

"Well...I applaud you for improving your cooking skills in a short amount of time, even with help from Shirou."

Gawain's mood immediately brightened as he heard those words.

"T-Thank you very much!" he exclaimed in happiness.

The Arturias smiled. "No problem. Now, shall we continue to eat?"

Everyone in the cafeteria then continued to eat and it was a joyous moment. The Arturias were happily eating the mashed potatoes Shirou and Gawain made, and the Knights of the Round were doing the same too.

All and all, everyone seems happy.

However, this event had an expect Shirou did not expect until later...

_(The next day...)_

Shirou was walking down Chaldea's hallway, thinking about what will happen today.

However, what happened next was something he did not expect again.

And that something was Lancelot, Bedivere, Tristan, Gareth, and Mordred coming up to Shirou suddenly.

"Queen Shirou!" they exclaimed.

"W-What?" Shirou asked, not expecting them to come up to him.

"Please teach us in the ways of cooking like what you did to Gawain!"

"Why...?" He thought as he was going through déjà vu.

**Omake**

"Hey Da Vinci, can I ask you a question?" Ritsuka asked.

"Sure. What is it?" Da Vinci replied.

"Does Shirou has any passive skills?"

"Why are you asking me that all of a sudden?"

"Well...it's because of Shirou's cooking."

"How so?"

"Simple. Shirou's cooking is so good that it's nearly making every servant in Chaldea eat in happiness. In fact, I wouldn't be surprise if he does have a passive skill like that."

Da Vinci laughed at Ritsuka's explaination. "Yeah right. Like that's possible."

"True. But still, can you check?"

"All right. I'll check."

Da Vinci then went over to Chaldea's database to see what other skills Shirou has. When she checked on his profile, what she saw surprised her.

On his profile...was a skill that made her eat her own words.

**Skill:**

**Divine Cooking: Rank EX**

**Description: A skill in which makes Shirou's cooking so divine that it would have the power to make heroic spirits, humans, gods, and demons fall into pleasure of how good his cooking is. Also has the power to give buffs to any allied Saberface, Rinface, Sakuraface, Illyaface, Miyu, Astraea, and any Emiya family member in battle.**

"Uh Ritsuka...you might want to see this..." Da Vinci said.

Ritsuka then looked at the database and gasped at what he saw.

"Wow," Ritsuka said.

"Yeah. Did not expect that," Da Vinci replied.


	6. Tea Party

"Onii-chan! More sweets please!" Illya requested.

"Me too!" Kuro said as well.

"I want some as well," Miyu said.

"I need a refill on tea too," Sitonai said.

"All right, all right," Shirou said as he went into the kitchen to prepare and get more cookies, cakes, tarts, and many more sweets.

Right now, Shirou was in a tea party with Illya, Sitonai, Kuro, Miyu, Jack the Ripper, Nursery Rhyme, Abigail, and Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily in Chaldea's cafeteria. He was in charge with preparing the tea and sweets for the little servants for the whole day. As Shirou brought over the tea and sweets for the servants, he thought back to the events that brought him here.

"Man. Illya and the others sure got me this time..." he thought...

_(A few hours earlier...)_

Shirou was walking down Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business, when suddenly, he felt a pair of hands hugging him on the back.

"Onii chan!"

Shirou recognized that voice and turned around to see Illya.

"I-Illya? What is it?" he asked.

"Onii chan. Can you come to today's tea party with Sitonai, Kuro, Miyu, and my friends?" Illya asked as she released Shirou from her hug.

"Tea party?"

"Yeah! It's going to be fun!" Illya exclaimed excitedly.

Shirou thought about it and said, "I don't know Illya..."

"Please?"

"But-"

"Pleeaaasssseeeee?" She said with puppy eyes.

As soon as Shirou saw Illya's puppy eyes, Shirou immediately felt his resistance weaken. No matter how many times he has seen that face, he still cannot resist Illya's puppy eyes look. "Oh root, there it is. The puupy eyes. I swear, I need to improve on my resistance to those type of eyes. And not just from Illya, but also from Saber as well when she wants food. But still..."

After a few moments of silence, Shirou reluctantly agreed.

"Okay," he said.

"Yes!" Illya exclaimed excitedly as she tugged on Shirou's arm. "Now come on! You don't want to keep them waiting!"

She then dragged him to the cafeteria. Over there, Shirou saw Sitonai, Kuro, and Miyu along with some other servants that he doesn't know yet on the table eating sweets and drinking tea.

"Ah! Onii-chan!" Sitonai, Kuro, and Miyu said in happiness. "Have you decided to join us?"

"Y-Yeah..." Shirou said nervously. "Uh Illya, who are they?" he said as he noticed the four other girls in the cafeteria.

"Hm? Oh, I forgot! Let me introduce you to them onii-chan!" Illya replied as she left Shirou's side. "The girl with the black hat and twin tails is Nursery Rhyme, the girl with the black hat and orange bowties is Abigail Williams, the girl in the black robes is Jack the Ripper, the girl wearing green is Paul Bunyan, and finally, the girl with the silver headpiece is Jeanne De Arc Alter Santa Lily!"

For a small moment, there was silence in the cafeteria until Illya gestured them to introduce each other.

"Huh? Oh, I'm Emiya Shirou. Illya's, Sitonai's, Kuro's, and Miyu's older brother. Nice to meet you four."

"Eh? Oh! Uh...nice to meet you too Mr. Shirou!" Abigail said.

"Yeah! Nice to meet you too!" Nursery Rhyme replied as well.

"Nice to meet you too Mr Shirou!" Paul Bunyan said.

"Nice...to meet you too," Jack said in a soft tone.

"Yeah. Nice to meet you too Mr. Shirou," Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily said.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Man. This is not how I would expect to spend an afternoon in Chaldea like this. Of course, this is coming from someone who spends his afternoons cooking up meals for a bunch of servants. But still though, never thought to meet Jack the Ripper, Abigail Williams, Nursery Rhyme, Paul Bunyan, and apparently a small variation of Jeanne D'arc today. Also, who would have ever thought that Jack the Ripper wasn't a man at all, but rather a small little girl? Jeez, if London finds out about this, then they'll be having a fit that one of their most heinous criminals was a little girl this whole time." Shirou thought as he made more cookies for the tea party.

As he looked at the group of girls having fun, he smiled at how happy Illya was...and her other versions as well.

"Well...at least Illya made friends in Chaldea...along with her alternate selves...and my sister from an alternate universe."

As Shirou was looking at the group of girls, the timer dinged, signaling that the cookies were ready.

"Ah. They're done now."

Shirou then wore some mittens, pulled the oven door down, and grabbed the baking tray filled with cookies from the oven. "Smells good," he thought as he took a whiff at the cookies. He then placed the cookies on a cooling rack while he prepared some tea.

"I'm sorry Illya, but the cookies will take some time to cool down. Do you mind?" he asked.

"No problem Onii-chan!"

"Thanks. In the meanwhile, enjoy come cakes and tea."

Shirou then brought over small plates of slices of cakes and a teacup set for the girls. As he placed it down on the table, the girls were in awe at how beautiful the cakes and teacup set looked.

"Wow! This looks amazing!" Illya said.

"Yeah. Onii-chan really outdid himself this time," Kuro said with a gaze filled with hunger.

"No kidding. Looking at this is making me hungry already," Sitonai said.

"Me too," Miyu admitted with a blush.

"Waaaah, this looks good to eat..." Abigail said with a drool coming out of her mouth.

"I want to eat them now," Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Me too," Nursery Rhyme said.

"We three," Jack the Ripper said.

"Me four..." Paul Bunyan said.

Shirou smiled at the compliments. "Well then...shall we eat?"

The entire group then started to dig in into the cakes and tea. As Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, Nursery Rhyme, Abigail, Jack, and Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily bit into the cakes, their faces went up into joy as the savored the taste of the assorted cakes and tea.

"Wah! So delicious!" Illya said.

"Obviously! This is onii-chan's cooking we're talking about!" Kuro said with a mouthful of cake.

"How long has it been since we've tasted onii-chan's cooking?" Sitonai said as she took a piece of cake.

"Too long I think," Miyu said as she sipped her tea.

"Wow, your brother's cooking is way good!" Abigail said as she took a bite of her cake.

"Yes! I wish to have more cake from him!" Nursery replied happily.

"Me too!" Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"We three..." Jack said.

"Me four..." Paul said.

As the group continued their tea party, the girls were chatting about what was going on in Chaldea. Some chats include what was going in their personal lives, some include the quests and singularities Ritsuka went, some of the shenanigans that occurs once every while, some of the daily events, and many more. During this time, Shirou then went back to the kitchen counter to check on the cookies and started making more sweets.

Of course, this wasn't limited to other people as well as the girls started talking about Shirou.

"So Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, what does your onii-chan does?" Abigail asked.

"Hm? Oh! What onii-chan does is that he works in Chaldea's cafeteria along with a bunch of other servants as well. Not only that, but he also helps master fix singularities as well as go on missions with him."

"Really? What class is he?" Nursery asked.

"He's a saber class! The best class!" Kuro exclaimed happily.

"Wow! He must be really strong then!" Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Not just that. He's also nice as well and is a good cook," Miyu said with a smile.

"Really?" Jack said with wonder.

"Yup," Sitonai said with a proud face.

As the conversation about Shirou continued, it reached to a point where one could say it got really crazy.

All because Paul Bunyan asked a question that raised many questions.

"Hey Illya?" Abigail asked.

"What is it Paul?" Illya replied.

"Do you like your brother?"

Illya immediately blushed at the question. "W-W-What!? W-Why are you asking me this?!"

"Just wondering. That is all."

"I-It's nothing like that at all!"

Abigail then let out a small smug grin. "So, you don't like your brother then?"

"T-That's not what I meant!" Illya yelled with a blush.

"Is everything okay over there?" Shirou asked.

"E-Everything is fine onii-chan!" Illya said, trying to keep the conversation under control.

"How about you Kuro?"

"Me? Well, I like onii-chan, even though this version is not our version," Kuro said with a smile.

"And you Miyu?"

Miyu didn't say anything but a blush appeared on her face.

"Is that a yes?"

Miyu nodded.

"What about you Sitonai?"

"Me? Well...I do like him."

"So, it's settled then. All of you like Shirou then, even though you're all his little sisters."

Illya blushed at the thought of that. "I told you, it's nothing like that!"

"But you know, Onii-chan's quite sinful..." Kuro said with a smirk.

"What do you mean?" Nursery asked.

"Isn't it obvious? Onii-chan's got four little girls loving him. And that's not only it. He's also got multiple versions of Rin, Luvia, and his kouhai from high school in the same boat as well. I think her name was Sakura, wasn't it Miyu?"

"Yes," Miyu replied.

"Wow," Jeanne D'arc said.

"Yeah, and it's not over yet."

"What do you mean?" Jack asked.

Sitonai let out a sigh. "Let me tell you this. If getting onii-chan's affections were a competition, then the biggest obstacle wouldn't be Rin or Sakura or Luvia."

"Then who?"

Then it was both Illya and Miyu's turn to let out a sigh. "Apparently...the king of knights known as King Arthur was a woman and apparently had a master/servant relationship in their version of the holy grail war. Not only that, but they also fell in love together," Illya said as she sipped on her tea.

"Wow. That sounds tough," Abigail said.

"Yeah. And the worst part? Her alternate versions feel the same way about onii-chan too," Miyu said with a pout. "And King Arthur apparently has a lot of alternate versions of herself as well."

"Really? How many?" Nursery asked.

"Well...probably enough to make Chaldea go on daily restocks of the kitchen every day after each meal time," Sitonai said.

Nursery, Abigail, Jack, Paul, and Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily were in shock at what Sitonai just said.

"Wow. That many?" Jack asked.

"Yup," Sitonai said.

"Man. That sounds tough," Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"No kidding. The thought of that many girls interested in my onii-chan is just crazy. I mean seriously, he doesn't act like a playboy unlike some other servants, and yet the girls just want him. Even my mom is on this as well!"

"How so?" Paul asked.

"Well...once she tried to give pictures...of onii-chan...to the girls."

Nursery, Abigail, Jack, Paul, and Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily's eyes went big as they tried to process this information. "No way!" they exclaimed.

"Yeah," Illya said with a sigh.

"What for?" Abigail asked.

"Apparently mama wants grandkids soon, so she's trying to hook him up with one of the girls," Kuro said with a sigh.

"Wow. Sounds like he needs to be castrated," Jack said.

Illya and Miyu's faces had a blush when they heard that line considering that they heard that line coming from their version of Irisviel from their world.

"A-Anyway! Let's end this conversation before-"

"Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, Nursery, Abigail, Jack, Paul, Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily, do you all want some cookies and sweets?" Shirou called out from the kitchen.

"Yes!" they all exclaimed, forgetting what Jack said earlier.

Shirou then brought out the cookies and sweets from the kitchen and placed it on the table they were sitting at. As the group of girls bit into the cookies and sweets, like before, their faces were in joy over how good it was. Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu kept eating the cookies while Nursery, Abigail, Jack, Paul, and Jeanne D'arc were enjoying the sweets, and Shirou was enjoying the tea.

Eventually, all the sweets and tea were gone, ending the tea party.

"Well, today seems like a fun day," Nursery said with a smile.

"Yeah. And we get to learn about Mr. Shirou," Abigail replied.

"Shall we continue this next week?" Jack asked.

"Yeah!" Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily replied with a smile.

"I agree with that," Paul said with a smile.

"Well onii-chan, do you like the tea party?" Illya asked.

"Yeah," Shirou said with a smile.

"Well then, the next time whenever me and my friends have a tea party, will you come?" Kuro asked.

"Yes."

"Promise?" Miyu asked.

"Yes."

"Pinky promise?" Sitonai asked while holding up her pinky.

Shirou let out a small sigh before doing the same. "Pinky promise," he said.

Sitonai smiled. "Good. Oh, by the way, me, Illya, Kuro, and Miyu have something for you."

"What is it?"

Illya, Sitonai, Kuro, and Miyu proceeded to bring something from their pockets, which were flower crowns.

"Are these flower crowns?" Shirou asked.

"Yes!" they exclaimed.

"What for?"

"For helping around in Chaldea obviously!" Illya said.

"And for cooking delicious food for everyone!" Kuro said.

"And for giving everyone happiness!" Sitonai said.

"And for being the best onii-chan!" Miyu said.

Shirou smiled at his little sisters' work. "Thank you," he said.

"Your welcome!" they replied. "Well then, see you next time!"

Shirou and the group of girls then went on their separate ways. Shirou went alone in one direction while Illya went with Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu in another direction, and Nursery, Abigail, Jack, Paul, and Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily went in another direction separate from the two.

"Wasn't today fun?" Nursery asked.

"Yup!" Abigail replied in a cheery tone.

"I know right!" Paul said with a smile.

"Best tea party ever! Who would have ever known that Illya's, Kuro's, Sitonai's, and Miyu's big brother would be good at cooking! How about you Jack?" Jeanne D'arc Alter Santa Lily asked.

Jack didn't say a thing.

"Jack?"

"I think we found a new mommy..." was all Jack said.

Everyone else was quiet at what Jack just said.

Meanwhile, Shirou was wearing the flower crowns on his head around Chaldea.

And everyone found it cute.

Especially the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Astraea, and Irisviel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update 6/20/20: Added Paul Bunyan and added/changed a few lines.


	7. Rinfaces and Technology Problems

_Ishtar, the Babylonian goddess of fertility, love, storms, and war. She is the one who bears the title, "The Queen of Heaven." The same can be applied to her rider self too._

_Ereshkigal, the Babylonian goddess of death. Also known as "The Queen of the Great Below," or "Lady of the Great Place."_

_While these two (or three) may not get along with each other, they have two things in common._

_One which is that they share the same face, body, and voice of a certain girl._

_And that certain girl is named Tohsaka Rin._

_Who happened to be a giant tsundere for a certain someone._

_However, that is not the case for these two._

_Because Ishtar carries Rin's tsundere side while Ereshkigal carries Rin's deredere side._

_Another common point that these two (or three) share is the lack of knowledge to use modern technology._

_Because Tohsaka Rin doesn't even know how to use modern technology or how it works._

_And since they inherited Rin's body, they also inherited her tendencies as well._

_Especially the part where they don't know how to use modern technology._

_To make matters worse for them, Chaldea is filled with modern technology, making it their crucible. Ironically, they're living here._

_Luckily, they have a certain red-haired heroic spirit to help them..._

Shirou was having a normal day, walking down in the hallways of Chaldea. As he was doing that, he passed by one of Chaldea's relaxation rooms.

That was when he heard a familiar voice.

"Eh...uh...how do I do this?"

That voice was Ishtar, and she was having a hard time using the television and the remote.

"How do I change the channel?" she muttered as she tried to change the channel on the tv with the remote but failed. She then pressed multiple buttons on the tv remote, but they had no effect whatsoever. "Damn it! Why won't this stupid remote work!?" she yelled as she threw the remote down in a fit of anger.

However, she didn't realize that Shirou was watching the spectacle this whole time.

"Uh...Tohsaka?"

As soon as Ishtar heard Shirou's voice, she immediately jumped, floated in the air, and turned around to see Shirou in the relaxation room.

"E-Emiya-kun?!" she yelled with a blush.

There was a short silence as the two were trying to process what just happened.

"H-How long have you been here?!" Ishtar exclaimed nervously as her secret was exposed by the one person she didn't want anyone to know.

"Uh...just now?" he said.

After a few minutes of silence, Ishtar suddenly started to beat down on Shirou, stomping him with her foot.

"Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow! Tohsaka!"

"Call me Ishtar!"

"Ishtar-san, please stop this!" Shirou yelled as he was getting stomped on by Ishtar.

Ishtar then slowly stopped stomping on his head, leaving him some relief as the pain was over.

"You're bad with machines, aren't you? If you mind, maybe I can help you with-" Shirou said but was cut off.

"Mind your own business! I can use the television by myself just fine!" Ishtar exclaimed with a blush on her face.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah!"

"Well then...let me see."

Ishtar was in a loss of words. She then took a few breaths before composing herself to her normal state.

_"Just calm down. As the goddess of fertility, love, storms, and war, I can not allow such a small thing like this to beat me. What's more, I can't let Emiya-kun to know that I don't know how to use a tv remote or the television!"_

Ishtar then picked up the remote from the ground that she threw earlier and pointed it at the tv. She then pressed a button, but there was no affect. She then pressed multiple buttons, but there was no affect as well. At that moment, Ishtar felt angry over how a tv remote was causing her trouble, but quickly calmed herself down after knowing that Shirou was still here.

After a few minutes of calming down, Ishtar then exclaimed, "Right! The tv remote here isn't a tv remote! It's probably a remote for something else!"

Shirou looked at Ishtar with strange expression.

"Uh...Ishtar-san..."

"What is it?"

"There's only one technological item in the room right now."

Ishtar laughed nervously...and then slumped in defeat as she realized that she can't get away from this situation she was in and try to salvage some of her reputation.

"Do you need some help?"

Ishtar let out another sigh.

"Yes please..."

Shirou then took the remote from Ishtar's hand and used it the same way as she did before and like before, nothing happened. For a little while, Shirou was confused for a moment.

Until something hit him.

Shirou the checked the back of the remote and unlocked the compartment, revealing the two batteries in it. He then released the batteries from the remote and then walked out of the room before saying, "Give me a moment. I'll be back."

Ishtar was confused for a moment. "Where are you going Emiya-kun?"

"Da Vinci's workshop. I think I know what the problem is."

A few minutes later, Shirou returned with the remote in his hand. He then handed it to Ishtar. "Try it out now," he said with a smile.

Ishtar blushed at the sight of Shirou and said, "T-Thank you." Ishtar then pressed a button on the remote in front of the tv and the channel swapped to a different one. "H-How?!" she exclaimed because the remote was working now.

"Yeah...about that...turns out that the batteries had to be replaced with new ones..."

Ishtar was dumbfounded by this turn of events.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

There was a silence between the two as they just realized that all of Ishtar's problems with the television was because the batteries hadn't been replaced with new ones.

"So...what were you trying to do?" Shirou asked.

Ishtar blushed again. "I-It's none of your business!"

_(The next day...)_

Shirou was cleaning the dishes in the cafeteria after working up a meal for the patrons that were there before. As he was cleaning the dishes, a certain goddess came up to him.

"Emiya-kun."

For a moment, Shirou stopped washing the dishes to see who the voice was. As he looked around, he saw Ereshkigal on the counter top.

"Huh? Oh...Ereshkigal-san."

Ereshkigal smiled at Shirou. "Just Ereshkigal is fine, and I don't mind if you call me by my container's last name as well."

"Well then...Tohsaka."

Ereshkigal blushed for a moment before remembering what she came here for. "By the way Emiya-kun, can you help me with something?"

"Hm? What is it?"

"Well...there's something in my room that needs fixing, and well...you're the only one that I can rely on at the moment."

Shirou was surprised at the moment. He thought that Ereshkigal would act like Ishtar considering that they both carry Rin's body as a container, but to his shock, she did not.

"Why me though? Why not ask Da Vinci or master or Mashu or Archer?" he asked.

"Da Vinci is busy for the moment, and I didn't want to bother her, and Master is on a quest with Mash and Archer. In fact, Archer told me to come to you for problems."

Shirou sighed at what Ereshkigal just said. "Damn it Archer, you just have to place this on me huh?" he thought as he resumed cleaning the dishes. "Give me a few minutes, because I need to finish cleaning the dishes. Can you wait until then?"

"Yes!" Ereshkigal exclaimed happily.

After a few minutes, Shirou was done cleaning the dishes. He left the countertop and then left the cafeteria with Ereshkigal at his side.

As they were walking, Shirou asked Ereshkigal a question.

"Hey Ereshkigal?"

"What is it Emiya-kun?"

"You and Ishtar-san possess the same body, right?"

"Yes."

"Well then how come Ishtar acts so differently from you? I'm just curious considering that well...since you two possess the same body, you two may act similar."

Ereshkigal let out a sigh. "Well...blame Ishtar for that."

Shirou was confused. "Huh?"

"It's quite simple. Before she fused with her vessel, Ishtar was, excuse my words, a total bitch."

Shirou was stunned at her choice of words.

"Really?"

"Yep. If anything, she's actually a lot nicer after fusing with her vessel."

"Huh. Didn't know that."

"Yeah. Anyway, we're here now," Ereshkigal said as they arrived at her room. As they entered her room, Shirou noticed that her room was quite simple despite being a goddess of death. The room itself was white, and all that was there was a bed, desk, a bathroom, and that was it.

Overall, the room seemed nice and didn't show any problem.

"Okay, what seems to be the problem?" Shirou asked.

"Wait for a moment."

Shirou then waited for Ereshkigal to pull out the item that needed fixing...or so as he thought.

What Ereshkigal gave to Shirou...was a laptop.

And one in clean condition too.

"Uh...Ereshkigal...what's going on?"

"Well...Master gave me this as a gift earlier, and...I need your help getting this thing to work," Ereshkigal said with a blush on her face.

"You mean the laptop?"

"Yes! Is that what it's called?"

"Yeah. Anyway, just let me open it up for a moment."

Ereshkigal then gave Shirou the laptop in which he opened up the screen. As he examined it, he thought, "Wow, this looks really new. Guess she hasn't touched it for a while, or maybe ever since she got it."

"Okay Ereshkigal, do you want to know how to turn it on?"

Ereshkigal nodded sideways.

"It's actually quite simple. Just press the power button like this," Shirou said as he pressed the power button. As he did, the laptop screen came to light.

"Really. All I had to do was just press the power button and that's it?"

"Yeah. Afterwards is just inputting some personal data and well...that's about it."

"I see...well then, thanks Emiya-kun."

"No problem Tohsaka. Also, one more thing, whenever you download something, make sure to see if the source is trustworthy so that no problems will occur on your laptop."

"Got it."

Shirou then left Ereshkigal's room, leaving her to her own device to play with.

_(The next day...)_

Like yesterday, Shirou was walking down Chaldea's hallway, wondering what will happen today.

However, as the old saying goes, "What happens twice will come thrice."

And apparently, like Archer Ishtar, Rider Ishtar is having the same problems as her counterparts.

As Shirou was walking down the hallway, he heard a noise coming out from Rider Ishtar's room.

And it was not a happy noise.

It was rather a mad sound.

As Shirou got closer to the door to Rider Ishtar's room, he didn't account on the door automatically opening itself immediately. As so, what he saw made him surprised.

Rider Ishtar was apparently raging...at a smartphone

To make matters worse, Rider Ishtar noticed the door opening and turned around to see Shirou at the doorway.

There was a silence between the two as they were trying to comprehend what just transpired. No one said a word at each other as they were shocked to see each other like this.

Eventually, the silence had to be broken.

"H-Hey...Ishtar..."

And in the sense of déjà vu, Rider Ishtar started pummeling Shirou like what her Archer counterpart did.

"Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow! Ishtar-san!" Shirou yelled.

"Shut up! It's your fault that you put yourself in this situation! Now take it!" Ishtar yelled in embarassement.

After a few minutes of foot stomping, Rider Ishtar thought Shirou had enough of it and decided to stop, allowing Shirou to rest from her assault. Shirou then got up from the ground.

"Well then...what's going on?" Shirou asked.

Rider Ishtar let out a sigh before ranting. "It's this stupid phone! I don't know how to access it or call anyone with this!"

Shirou sighed as this situation was like Archer Ishtar's. "Do you need some help with it?" he asked.

Ishtar let out another blush. "I-It's none of your business! I can handle this on my own!"

_"Yup. Even her counterpart still acts like the same when it comes to technology..."_

Time passed as Shirou was looking at Rider Ishtar's attempts of using the smartphone, but sadly failed as every time she tried to, it ended up in failure.

After a few more attempts, Rider Ishtar eventually gave up.

"Now do you need some help?" Shirou asked.

Rider Ishtar slumped in defeat. "Yes please," she said as she handed the smartphone over to Shirou.

Shirou then grabbed the smartphone, pressed the power button on the side, and used his index finger to unlock the screen by swiping it sideways. "Here."

Rider Ishtar looked at him in shock. "How?!"

"The power button was on the side...and you need to swipe the screen with your finger," Shirou replied.

Rider Ishtar was dumbounded. "Oh," she said in disbelief.

"Yeah. Anyways...can I go now?"

"Not yet. There's one more thing I need to ask for you," Rider Ishtar said with a scary smile.

Shirou gulped as he knew that he was screwed whenever Rin put on her trademark scary smile. It practically meant a death sentence for him. "W-What is it?"

"Oh, don't worry, I am not going to hurt you..."

Shirou let out a sigh of relief.

"I want to take pictures with you!" she exclaimed.

This time, it was Shirou's turn to be dumbfounded. "Huh?"

"Consider this your reward for helping me! And you can't refuse this reward from this goddess!"

Shirou sighed as he somehow got himself into this position. "Well at least I am not going to get shot by a Gandr," he thought.

"Well?" Rider Ishtar asked, waiting for her answer.

"All right."

Rider Ishtar smiled as she heard those words. "Then let's do it!"

What happened next was a series of selfies in which both Shirou and Rider Ishtar would take many photos of themselves, ranging from making faces to poses under Rider Ishtar's directions.

Eventually, Rider Ishtar had enough of the photo taking.

"Okay, I think we're done for today," she said with a smile of satisfaction.

"You sure?" Shirou asked.

"Yes. Now you can leave Emiya-kun."

"Well then, see you later Tohsaka."

To Shirou's surprise, Rider Ishtar didn't correct him this time as he was walking out of her room.

Because in the end, she's got pictures of Shirou and herself on her phone...

And that's enough to put a smile on her face.


	8. Senpai and Kouhai

_Parvati, the Indian goddess who is the wife of Shiva._

_Kama, the Indian god of love who shows himself in any form._

_BB, the advanced AI from the moon cell and her sisters, Meltlilith, Passionlip, and Kingprotea._

_While these servants may not get along with each other, there is one thing they can agree on._

_They are based off from Sakura Matou._

_Who happens to have a huge crush on Shirou Emiya._

_Who happens to be in Chaldea as a heroic spirit as Sengo Muramasa's vessel._

_And they're all together in one place._

_Due to all of them fusing with Sakura Matou, they also picked up some of her attributes and some parts of her personality._

_Especially the part where she calls Shirou, "Senpai."_

_Lucklily, they don't cause trouble in Chaldea, although BB and Kama may pull a prank or two._

_Although what would happen when Shirou meets all of them...?_

Shirou was in one of Chaldea's repair workshops. Over there, he was fixing a broken heater. While he can just magically project a new one, it will eventually fade away within a few hours.

Plus, he like to do things the old way.

"Man, it's been forever since I've done something like this. This reminds me of the old days, me in my old home's tool shed, fixing broken appliances while training my mage craft as well," he thought as he was tightening up one of the screws of the heater. As he was working, he didn't notice someone walking in.

It was Parvati, holding two cups of tea with some snacks on a tray.

"Uh...senpai?"

Shirou heard Parvati's voice and temporarily stopped for a moment. "Huh? Oh...Saku-Parvati?"

Pavati smiled. "Just call me Sakura, sempai."

Shirou let out a sigh of relief. "Sakura, what are you doing here?"

"Simple, I asked Master and Mashu where you were. They told me you were here, doing an errand for Da Vinci apparently."

"I see," Shirou said before looking at the cup of tea. "And what's with the cups of tea and snacks?"

"Oh this? Master and Mashu told me you were in there for quite a while, so I thought to bring you something to refresh you up," Pavati said with a smile.

Shirou chuckled a little bit. "Sakura, you know you don't have to-"

"Nonsense senpai! You've been in here all day, working on broken objects without any rest! At least take a break and drink something before starting again!" Pavati said with a pout.

Shirou looked at Pavati's pouting face and sighed in defeat, knowing that Sakura, or rather Pavati, was never going to leave him alone after this.

After a few minutes of silence, he said, "Fine."

Pavati exclaimed happily. "Yes!" she said while raising a fist in the air. She then placed the cup of tea and snacks with the tray on the ground next to where Shirou was sitting. Pavati then sat next to Shirou.

"By the way senpai."

"What is it?"

'What do you think of Chaldea so far?"

"Well...it's quite interesting I'll say. I mean, there's a lot of historical figures who became heroic spirits here, although some of them...don't look like how the books show them. I mean seriously, now I can't get the image of Thomas Edison out of my head in which if you didn't know, looked like a person in superhero tights wearing a stone lion head."

Pavati giggled at Shirou's description of Thomas Edison. "Anything else?"

"Well...I'm also surprised that there's a bunch of versions of Saber, Tohsaka, you, and Illya along with Luvia, my sister from another universe, a version of Illya's mom, and another version of my old man."

"Eh...is that so?"

"Yeah."

"Well I can't blame you. I was shocked to see so many versions of me when I got here as well. Along with nee-san, saber-san, and Illya-chan."

"No kidding."

"Yeah. Anything else senpai?"

"Nope. I think that's all I have about Chaldea now."

"I see..."

Shirou and Parvati then continued to eat their snacks and drink their tea while chatting at the same time. As the conversation went on, it varied from multiple topics such as Ritsuka being the last master of Chaldea or the daily life of living here or how there are many servants living here.

Eventually, the snacks and tea were gone.

"Thanks for the snacks and tea Sakura."

Pavati smiled at Shirou's words. "No problem Senpai." Shirou then smiled back at her and gave her a head pat, making Parvati blush. "S-Senpai!" she said in embarrassment before she left in a flush of embarrassment.

And then Shirou continued to work on the broken heater...

_(The next day...)_

Shirou woke up in a dark space on a chair. As he looked around, it was dark wherever he looked.

_"Where am I? How did I get here? All I did was just walk down in the hallway. What is this place?"_

Then all of a sudden, he heard some music coming on.

***Cue BB channel's theme***

As the music started playing, the room was showered in lights as the room started to reveal itself. The room that Shirou was in looked like a mix between a newsroom and a trivia game room one would see on TV. The room itself was in a neon pink with a Tron-style design. There were chairs facing towards the front of the room which had a stand made from wood, an electronic screen, and a few papers on the walls.

On the electronic screen says the words, "News BB." That prompted Shirou to know where he was.

_"Don't tell me..."_

Shirou's thoughts were immediately interrupted as a certain moon cancer suddenly appeared in the room in a twirling fashion.

"Hi everyone! This is BB-chan here in the BB Channel! Today, I'll be reviewing Chaldea's newest servant named Emiya Shirou, or I would like to call him "Sempai!"

Shirou was in shock of what just transpired. Earlier, he was just having a normal stroll in Chaldea, and suddenly, he was instantly whisked away into BB's channel out of nowhere.

"BB...right?"

"Yes senpai?" she asked in a cheery tone.

"Did you drag me here?"

"Yes!"

"Why?"

"Because I want to spend time with you senpai!"

Shirou let out a sigh. "And I suppose the only way to get out of here is to spend time with you right?" he asked.

"Yes!" BB replied.

Shirou let out another sigh. "Well...guess I have no choice then..." After a few minutes of silence, he said, "All right. I'll stay here for a bit."

BB pumped a fist in the air in excitement. "Yes!" she exclaimed. She then sat onto a chair next to the one Shirou was in. "All right, here is the first question I want to ask about you!"

Shirou breathed in as he prepared himself.

"What are your thoughts about Chaldea?"

Shirou was stunned at the question, because Parvati asked a question like that yesterday. "Chaldea again?"

"Well?"

Shirou took a breather before answering. "Chaldea is a great place. I'm glad to know that such an organization like this exists to protect humanity from disasters and such. I mean, back when I was alive, an organization like this didn't exist in my time."

"Really?" BB asked.

"Yeah. The only magi organizations that existed in my time was just the Clock Tower, which didn't care about humanity. Most of its members cared about was finding the root and preserving mage craft of the sort."

"I see."

"Yeah. Anyways, I'm glad Chaldea is doing its job of protecting humanity from being incinerated and preserving the grand order. Otherwise, humanity would have ended a lot sooner."

BB smiled at Shirou's answer. "Okay, next question. What do you think about the personnel of Chaldea?"

"You mean Master, Mashu, and Da Vinci?"

"Yes."

Shirou gave the question a thought before answering. "About my thoughts for master, he seems to remind of myself."

"What do mean by that senpai?" BB asked.

"Well...he always seems to try to protect the ones that he loves and humanity itself. Although I'll admit...he is a bit more brash than me."

"Really? You think so?"

"Yeah. Also, his background as a mage is quite like mine, so I can relate to him a lot."

"I see. Well then, how about Mashu?"

"Mashu? Oh, about Mashu, she seems like a nice girl."

"How so?"

"Well, she's polite to everyone around here in Chaldea and doesn't start trouble among everyone else. Not only that, but she seems to care for everyone else in here as well, including master."

"I see. And Da Vinci?"

"To be honest, I was surprised the first time I saw Da Vinci. I mean, the books always show Da Vinci was a male and yet, it turns out that Da Vinci happened to be a little girl, not to mention she looks a lot like the Mona Lisa painting. Did she paint herself as an adult?"

BB chuckled at Shirou's statement. "Who knows? Maybe she has a lot of imagination I guess."

"You think so?"

"Yeah. Anyway, onto the third question."

Shirou then took breather before BB stated her question.

"How did you become a heroic spirit?"

Shirou gave that answer a long thought before saying, "Well...it's kind of a long story. You see, after the grail war I was in, I went on a journey to find a certain person. During that time, I somehow ended up gaining the attention of the heroic spirit Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith. Apparently, he took an interest in me and we made a contract. And the rest is...well history."

"And who was that certain person?" BB asked.

"Well...I don't want to say..." Shirou muttered with a blush on his face.

BB pouted as she didn't get her answer, but she quickly got over it.

"And...our time is over!" BB stated with a sad smile. "Now Senpai, you can go back to where you came from!"

BB then made a portal to Chaldea's hallway, giving a Shirou a passageway to where he came from. Shirou then left the chair he was sitting on and went for the portal before saying something to BB.

"Even though you sort of kidnapped me...I did enjoy the chat we just had," Shirou said with a smile.

BB blushed at Shirou's statement. "S-Senpai!"

Shirou chuckled. "Athough next time if I want to have a chat with you, don't kidnap me next time okay?"

BB nodded.

"Good. Well, see you later."

Shirou then went into the portal, leaving BB alone in her channel room.

_"Well that was interesting. Didn't know that Senpai became a heroic spirit that way...wonder what other secrets he's hiding..."_

_(The next day...)_

Shirou was walking in Chaldea's hallway again, this time without anyone kidnapping him to his relief.

"Well, nothing's happening so far..."

However, as soon as he gave that thought, he accidentally bumped into someone.

"Ow!"

"Hawawawa!"

Shirou rubbed the area that was sore from the bumping with his hand. As he was comforting it, he saw Passionlip with a bunch of papers around her from the impact that happened earlier.

However, there were two things that caught his attention.

Her giant chest and her giant golden claws.

Which were both huge.

Shirou blushed for a moment before banishing those thoughts from his head.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Y-Yeah..." Passionlip muttered embarrassingly in a soft tone.

Shirou then got up from the floor and lend a hand to Passionlip.

"Need some help?"

Passionlip nodded and grabbed Shirou's hand gently with her claws without harming him.

"A-Are you okay Senpai?" Passionlip asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine Passionlip-san," Shirou replied. "Do you need some help getting those papers up from the ground?"

"Y-Yes."

Shirou and Passionlip then picked up all the papers that fell onto the ground. "Okay, where were you about to take them to?"

"To Master's room. I got these papers from Da Vinci and apparently, she wants me to deliver them master."

"I see. Any idea what papers these are?"

"I don't know. Da Vinci never told me out them."

"I see."

Shirou and Passionlip then walked over to Ritsuka's room to give him the papers Da Vinci had for him. As they were walking over there, Shirou asked Passionlip a question.

"Hey Passionlip-san, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it senpai?"

'Well...uhm...don't you feel embarrassed with the outfit you're wearing right now?" he asked in embarrassment.

"What do you mean by that senpai?"

"Well...your outfit...don't you think it's a bit revealing?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, about that, I'm used to it."

Shirou was still troubled by this, but still went on nonetheless. Eventually, they arrived at Ritsuka's room and then Shirou called Ritsuka out.

"Master?"

"Shirou? What is it?" Ritsuka asked on the other side of the door.

"We got papers for you from Da Vinci," Passionlip replied.

"Okay! I'm coming over!"

After a few seconds, the door slid open, revealing Ritsuka in the doorway.

He was surprised at the amount of papers they had for him.

"Are...are all of those papers..."

"Yes. They're for you master," Shirou said.

Ritsuka sighed in defeat. "Well...thank you at least," he moaned before taking the stacks of paper from Shirou and Passionlip. "Good work you two."

"No problem master," Passionlip said.

"Well then...see you next time," Ritsuka said before leaving the doorway, making the doors close automatically.

After a few moments of silence of waiting, Passionlip decides to move on.

"Well then...see you later senpai."

And she proceeds to leave...before she felt Shirou's hand grasp onto her shoulder, surprising her.

"Wait a moment," Shirou said.

Passionlip was confused as why Shirou suddenly stopped her for a moment. Then she got her answer as Shirou draped his white kimono over her shoulders.

"Uh senpai? What are you doing?" she asked.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm letting you wear my kimono to cover yourself up," Shirou stated.

"B-But isn't this yours senpai?!" she asked in a flustered tone. "I mean, this is yours, so it's probably one of a kind so-!"

"Relax Passionlip, I can project another one."

Passionlip was stunned at this level of kindness she received from Shirou. "Are you sure?" she asked.

Shirou smiled. "Yes."

Passionlip looked at Shirou's kimono and said with a smile, 'I-If that's the case...then I'll gladly accept your gift Senpai!"

Shirou smiled back. "Your welcome."

And then the two parted ways...

_(The next day...)_

Shirou was in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms, watching a movie in the theater they apparently installed. As he was watching the movie in silence on the couch, a girl suddenly came in and sat next to him.

"Uh...Meltlilith-san?"

"Yeah. That's my name, idiot. Do I need to repeat it again?"

"No."

"Good."

Shirou sighed. "What are you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious I'm here to watch the movie with you."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"You like these kinds of movies?" Shirou asked while watching the movie, which happened to a mystery/detective movie.

"Nope."

"Then why are watching the movie then?"

"Because I'm bored."

Shirou nearly fell over after hearing Meltlilith's answer. "That's it?"

Meltlilith groaned. "Yes. Do I need to repeat myself again?" she asked in an angry tone. Shirou quickly shut up after hearing that. "Good."

Shirou and Meltlilith continued to watch the movie. As the scenes went on, Shirou then handed Meltlilith a bucket of popcorn. "Want some?" he asked.

Meltlilith nodded and reached into the bucket for some. As she took a few bites of it, she found it delicious as usual.

"Did you make this?" she asked.

"Yes," Shirou said with a smile. "I've always wanted to try to make homemade popcorn."

Meltlilith was surprised by that. "Well then...you made it a success," she said as she grabbed some more and started eating. As she was eating, she didn't notice that the amount that she just ate was what was left in the bucket Shirou brought over. "Ah."

"It's fine. I can get some more along with another bucket. Is that okay with you?" Shirou asked.

"Yes." Meltlilith said.

Shirou then paused the movie and left for the cafeteria to make some more popcorn along with getting a bucket. As Meltlilith was waiting for Shirou, she noticed that he left his Katana behind, making her curious about it.

_"Hmm...senpai's katana...wonder what it looks like..."_

Meltlilith then grabbed it and unsheathed it from its scabbard. As she saw the blade, she was marveled at its craftsmanship. The design of the hilt was simple, yet gorgous, the blade itself was in a gleaming silver, and the handle was also simple, yet gorgous.

"So beautiful..." she thought as she continued to gaze at it.

However, she didn't know that Shirou just came into the room, surprising her when he called her.

"Uh...Meltlilith san? What are you doing?"

Meltlilith jumped for a moment and turned around to see Shirou carrying two buckets of popcorn. "I-Isn't it obvious?! I-I'm looking at your weapon!" she exclaimed in an embarrassed tone.

"Oh."

"Y-Yeah! I-It's not like I wasn't planning on doing anything with it! S-So shut up and let me examine at bit more!"

Shirou shrugged and sat on the couch, waiting for Meltlilith to finish looking at Shirou's katana. After a short while, Meltlilith was finished looking his katana, and sat back on the couch with him.

"Is one of those buckets mine?"

"Yes. Any one is yours actually."

Meltlilith then grabbed one of the buckets from Shirou and munched on them as Shirou resumed the movie. As the movie went on, Meltlilith fell asleep on Shirou's shoulder. Shirou noticed this but didn't bother her.

Rather, he just watched the entirety of the movie with a sleeping Meltlilith on his shoulder.

_"I'll wake her up when the movie is over..."_

Eventually, the movie ended, and it prompted Shirou to wake Meltlilith up from her sleep. "Meltlilith, Meltlilith, wake up," he said as he nudged her awake.

"Mmmnng...what?" she asked drowsily.

"The movie's over."

"Huh? Oh," she said as she saw the credits.

"Yeah."

"How was it?"

"It was fine."

"I see."

"Yeah. Anyway, I'm going back to cafeteria for the daily meals now. Want to come?"

"Yeah. I don't mind."

Shirou smiled. "Thanks. Also, can I ask you one question?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Are you able to walk wearing those? I don't want you to fall," he asked while pointing at Meltlilith's shoes...if you can call them that.

"Huh? Oh these? Relax, I've been wearing these for quite a while, so I can handle them. You don't need to worry about them, although thanks for asking."

"Okay then."

And then the two headed towards the cafeteria. During the walk, Meltlilith had one thought about the whole event.

"Wish something like this would happen every day...spending time with senpai..."

_(The next day...)_

Shirou was standing in front of a room to deliver a package.

"So, this is Kingprotea's room? I wonder why Da Vinci chose me to deliver this package to her..." Shirou thought as his mind went back to the events that happened earlier...

_(A few minutes earlier...)_

"Huh? Deliver a package?" Shirou asked.

"Yes," Da Vinci replied. "I need you to deliver a package to Kingprotea."

"Kingprotea? Is that person a servant?"

"Yes."

"I see, and where is her room by the way?"

"Her room is room number 3006."

"Okay, although one question."

"Sure. What is it?"

"Why ask me again?"

"Well...just look and see," Da Vinci said with a smirk.

Shirou was confused at what Da Vinci said but still went on to do the delivery.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Honestly, Da Vinci's words still creep me out at this moment...I hope this isn't one of her pranks or something..." Shirou thought as he was in front of Kingprotea's room.

Shirou took a deep breath before calling in.

"Well...here goes nothing..."

Shirou then called out from the door of Kingprotea's room. "Excuse me, is this Kingprotea's room?" he asked.

After a few minutes of silence, Shirou heard a voice coming out from the other side of the room. "Yes."

"I got a package for you from Da Vinci. Can you come to receive it?"

"Yeah...uh...about that...can you come inside for that?"

Shirou was confused at this point. "Why?"

"Just come inside...please..." Kingprotea protested.

Shirou shrugged and went inside her room. However, as soon as he went inside, he was greeted with a surprised that he did not expect to see.

Which was a giant Sakura.

However, he was not the only one surprised as well.

Because as soon as Kingprotea saw Shirou, she immediately gasped.

"A-Are you Shirou?"

Shirou was stunned and had no words from looking at the giant Sakura. After a few seconds, Shirou regained his voice and asked, "Y-You know me?"

"Y-Yes. BB and the others told me about you."

Shirou let out a small gasp, but regained his composure shortly. "Well...I've got a package for you from Da Vinci. Where do you want me to put it?"

"Just put it in the corner. I'll open it later."

Shirou then put the box in the corner and said, "Well...guess I'll be going now..."

However, Kingprotea didn't want that and said, "W-Wait! Please stay here for a little longer."

Shirou asked, "Why?"

"Because...I want to learn more about you..." she said with a pouting face

Shirou sighed and stayed in her room as soon as he saw Kingprotea's pouting face. "All right," he said as he sat on a chair.

There was a moment of silence, because neither of them knows how to start the conversation.

Eventually, Shirou broke the ice by asking first. "So...you're Kingprotea huh?"

"Yes. The alter-ego of BB."

"The alter-ego of BB?"

"Yes."

"So...I guess that makes you and BB sisters?"

Kingprotea blushed at that statement.

"You could say that I guess..." she said in a flustered tone.

"Well...if that's the case...doesn't that make you, Passionlip, and Meltlilith sisters as well?"

"That too."

Shirou then took a deep breath before asking the next question. "Uhm...can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well...not being rude or anything...but how come I never see you in Chaldea up until now?"

"Well...it's because I'm too big...and well...I can't out."

"Have you tried making yourself shorter?"

"I don't think I'm able to."

"I see..."

Then another moment of silence came, and it lasted for a while until Kingprotea asked Shirou a question.

"Hey Shirou-senpai, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well...do you think that I am a monster?"

Shirou was baffled at that question. "What? Why?"

"Well...it's because I'm big...and...well-"

"It doesn't matter what you are to me. You're not a monster. You're just you, and I respect that."

Kingprotea blushed at Shirou's words. "Y-You think so?"

"Yeah," he replied with a smile.

Then the silence came back for a few moments, which prompted Shirou to leave since he thought his task was already over.

"Well then...I'll guess I'll see you around Kingprotea. Have a good day," he said before he left.

After Shirou left, Kingprotea felt a warmth growing inside of her. No one other than master has ever told her those words earlier, and it made her feel good about herself.

"Senpai...said those words to me...and they feel good..." she thought happily. However, she soon noticed the box that Shirou brought over earlier. She then opened up the box and was surprised what was inside.

They were shrinking pills.

Kingprotea didn't know what to say or think about this.

_(The next day...)_

Shirou was walking down Chaldea's hallway, when he heard a commotion going around in one of the corners, and it included a voice he recognized.

_"Master? What's going on over there? Who is he talking to?"_

As he got closer to the source of the commotion, he saw Ritsuka scolding what appears to be a tiny Sakura.

"How many times I told you don't do that?!" Ritsuka asked Kama.

"Hey! He deserved it for annoying me!" Kama replied.

"That doesn't mean you get to shoot a laser at Cu!"

"At least the laser didn't kill him!"

"That's not the point!"

Ritsuka and Kama continued to argue and that's when Shirou decided to pitch in.

"Uh master, what is going on here?"

For a moment, Ritsuka turned his attention to Shirou and said, "Ah! Shirou! Good, you're here!"

"What's going on here? And who's that little girl over there?"

"Ah. You see, this is-"

"My name is Kama, the god of love."

Shirou was surprised at what Kama just said. "Kama? The indian god of love? But...he looks like a she. Furthermore, she looks like a young Sakura with white hair."

Ritsuka resumed what was he about to say. "Anyways, as mentioned earlier, this person is Kama, the Indian god of love, even though he looks like a little girl."

"I see..." Shirou said.

"And who is Shirou?" Kama asked in annoyance. "How come I've never seen him before? Don't tell me he's your secret weapon to unleash if I betray you?"

"No, that's not it..." Ritsuka said softly.

"Well too bad! I'm not part of the Tokugawa anymore, so there's no point of having secret weapons!"

Shirou was stunned for a moment at what Kama just said. "Tokugawa...?"

After Kama calmed down from her rambling, Ritsuka said, "Anyways, Kama, meet Shirou." Kama looked away, prompting Ritsuka to sigh. "Man, she's still like that huh? Wonder what it will take for her to mellow down..."

Shirou then came up to Kama and gave her a head pat. "My name is Shirou Emiya. Nice to meet you."

At that moment, Kama felt a weird emotion and heat coming through her head. As she felt the emotion going through her body, she noticed one thing.

It was familiar to her, and she can't figure out why it felt so familiar.

"So, master...should I leave now or no?"

As soon as Kama heard that, she suddenly tugged on Shirou's kimono like how a child would tug on the parent's clothes.

"H-Hang on a moment, would you! This is just strange! I'm not part of the Tokugawa anymore, and yet...this throbbing in my chest is so familiar...why?!"

"Tokugawa? But aren't you an Indian god? Master, what is she taking about?"

"Well...that's a long story..." Ritsuka muttered.

Shirou was slightly confused before his attention returned to Kama.

"All that business before was because my body was affected by its outward appearance, that's all! Now, let's try it again with this look, shall we!" Kama exclaimed as she turned into her teenage form.

Shirou was stunned. "O-Okay?" He then gave Kama another head pat on the head, and like last time, Kama felt the same effect as before, and she screamed softly.

"Argh! W-We're not done yet!" she exclaimed as she turned into her adult form.

And yet again, Shirou gave her a head pat.

And she screamed softly again while burying her face into her hands, not knowing that Shirou placed his kimono over her shoulders.

As Ritsuka saw this event occurring, a thought came to his mind. "Huh, didn't know that Shirou had this kind of effect on Kama..."

And that's how Shirou tamed the Indian god of love...with head pats.


	9. A Day With a Goddess of Justice

"Ohohohohoho! Look at me Sherou! Look at this display of power! More useful than Ishtar, right?" Astraea exclaimed in excitement.

Shirou sighed as he looked at Luvia, or rather Astraea, take down hordes of enemies with her power as he slashed another enemy with his katana. As he continued slashing his enemies, a few thoughts came to his mind.

One which involves the butler outfit he was wearing currently.

And the other was the situation he was in.

"How did I end up in this situation?" he thought as his mind wandered to what happened a few hours ago...

_(A few hours ago...)_

"You're asking me to pair up with Astraea for a day?" Shirou asked Da Vinci and Ritsuka.

"Yes," both of them said in unison.

"But why?"

Da Vinci let out a sigh. "Honestly, it's because of your interactions with the other servants, and for some reason, she's not happy about it."

Shirou was flabbergasted at Da Vinci's explanation.

"Yeah. In fact, there were a few cases where she got into fights with Ishtar and her rider self after finding out that they spent time with you, and those fights well...they were too explosive even by Chaldea's standards. So, we asked her how to calm her down, and well..." Ritsuka said but was cut off from Shirou.

"In order to calm her down, you asked me to be with her for a day correct?"

"Yes. That is correct. She asked us if you can be with her for a day," Ritsuka said.

Shirou sighed. "Well...I can't refuse, can I?" Ritsuka and Da Vinci nodded, making Shirou sigh again. After a few moments of silence, he said, "Okay. I'll do it."

Ritsuka and Da Vinci smiled as they were glad as they were finally able to get some peace once from those three. Shirou was about to leave before Ritsuka placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Wait. There's one more thing I need to mention..." Ritsuka said.

Shirou was confused as he turned around...to see Da Vinci holding a familiar butler mystic code.

"Apparently Astraea also wants you to wear this butler mystic code from earlier," Da Vinci said with a smile.

Shirou sighed again.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Man, can't believe I'm wearing the butler mystic code again...and in a battle of all places. At least Da Vinci did make it stain-proof, so I won't worry about it getting dirty later...but still...this is the first time I've ever done something with Luvia...it could be nice." Shirou thought as he slashed another enemy down.

Meanwhile, Astraea was having the time of her life. After all, weeks of not spending any time with Shirou has resulted in a huge amount of pent-up jealously and rage.

Especially at the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, and the Knights of the Round.

And now after talking with Ritsuka and Da Vinci, she finally got her wish.

Spending time with Shirou.

"Man, I can't believe that my recent tussle with that useless goddess has created an opportunity like this! A day of having Sherou to myself! Might as well thank master later when this is over..." she thought as she kicked an enemy to the ground. As she began to swing her sword against another, she was so drowned in the feeling of fighting alongside Shirou that she didn't notice another enemy coming up behind her.

Luckily, Shirou managed to save her by tracing a copy of Kanshou and Bakuya and threw at her attacker's face, instantly killing him.

"Are you okay Astraea?" he asked.

Astraea blushed for a moment before answering, "Yes Sherou!"

Shirou smiled. "Well that's a relief. I didn't want to see you get hurt. Now come on, we've got a mission to finish."

Astraea nodded and soon the two left the area. As the two were walking in the forest, Astraea was having multiple thoughts in her head. "Oh my god, I nearly embarrassed myself in front of Sherou for a moment! Get a hold of yourself Astraea! Don't let yourself get into a bad situation again!" she thought as she and Shirou were walking down a trail path.

Shirou noticed this and asked, "Are you okay Astraea-san?"

"Yes. Why Sherou?" Astraea replied.

"Because your face is red."

Astraea then grabbed her scales and used it as a mirror to see her reflection. As such, Shirou was right. Her face was red like a tomato. Astraea then quickly regained her composure and said, "It's nothing Sherou."

"I see..."

"Also, you don't have to call me Astraea. Luvia is fine Sherou."

"Is that so? Then, shall we move on Luvia?"

Astraea smiled. "Yes Sherou!"

And so, the two continued finishing their quest.

_(A few hours later...)_

"And...they're back!" Da Vinci exclaimed as Shirou, Ritsuka, and Astraea were rayshifted back to Chaldea. "How did the mission go?"

"Well..."Shirou tried to explain but was cut off from Astraea.

"It was wonderful! Me and Sherou were taking down enemy after enemy with such divine grace and beauty!" Luvia boasted. "Oh, you should have seen it! It was glorious!"

Both Ritsuka and Da Vinci looked at Shirou in question after hearing Astraea's explanation. "Yeah. It went well..." he said while being embarrassed from hearing such praise from Astraea.

"Yeah. I agree with Shirou and Astraea," Ritsuka said.

"I see..." Da Vinci said. "Well anyways, all three of you can leave now."

Shirou, Ritsuka, and Astraea thanked Da Vinci and left the summoning room. However, as they got out of the summoning room, Astraea then grabbed Shirou's arm and dragged him to one direction of Chaldea's hallway.

"Wah! Luvia, where are we going?!" Shirou yelled as he was dragged across the hallway.

"Isn't it obvious?! I'm taking you to one of Chaldea's shops!"

Shirou was surprised. "Since when did Chaldea have shops?!" he asked.

"For a while now! You just haven't seen them yet!"

As Astraea was dragging Shirou in the hallway, she caught the attention of the Rin-faces and Sakura-faces, prompting jealously from them.

"Hey! What are you doing to Emiya-kun, Astraea!?" Ishtar, her rider self, and surprisingly Ereshkigal yelled out.

"It's none of your business you useless goddesses!" she yelled out to Ishtar and her rider self.

"Let go of senpai this instant!" Parvati, BB, Passionlip, and Meltlilith said while Kingprotea and Kama stayed quiet, but still showed jealously.

"Nope! He's mine for today!"

And just like that, Astraea instantly increased her running speed just to make sure that the Rin-faces and Sakura-faces don't try to follow her.

After a few minutes, Astraea finally arrived at the area filled with shops along side with Shirou. As Shirou managed to catch his breath after being dragged around like a rag doll by Astraea, he was shocked at the amount of shops that were inside of Chaldea. There were multiple shops of many interests. Some shops were selling jewelry, others were selling weapons, others were selling books, and many more.

And it piqued Shirou's interest.

"There was something like this in Chaldea?" Shirou asked Astraea.

"Yes Sherou! Chaldea is filled with shops of many things! Not only that, but it also has hot springs, a simulator, and many more things as well!" Astraea explained excitedly. "Now come on! There's a lot of shops that I want to show you!"

Astraea then started dragging Shirou around the many shops. The first one they stopped by was a jewelry shop. As they went inside, they were greeted with multiple jewels everywhere, ranging from small to big in many colors. Astraea then looked around to see which jewel suits her best but was having trouble choosing which one.

She then turned to Shirou and asked, "Sherou, which jewel do you think that suits me?"

Shirou looked at all of them and replied, "I don't know. They all look beautiful to me." Astraea sighed at Shirou's answer and continued to look around the counter for any jewelry that suits her. As they looked around, Shirou saw one that caught his attention. It was a necklace which was a sapphire gem shaped as a diamond with gold patterns engraved on the sides being held up by a gold chain. "How about this one?" he asked as he pointed at the necklace, letting Astraea see.

As Astraea saw it, she was immediately entranced by its beauty. "It's perfect Sherou!" she exclaimed happily. "I'll take it!" she said before buying the necklace. As she received the box that has the necklace, she then opened the box, pulled out the necklace, and said, "Sherou, would you mind helping me putting the necklace on my neck?"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Please."

"As you wish Luvia," Shirou said before he took the necklace from the box and wrapped it around her neck carefully.

As Shirou was done with the task, Astraea turned around and asked, "How do I look Sherou?"

Shirou gave her a smile. "It looks good on you."

Astraea blushed at Shirou's complement before quickly regaining her composure. "Come on, we got another store to look at!" she exclaimed as she was walking out the jewelry store. Shirou then followed her out.

After a few minutes, they stopped by the next store, which was a mystic code store.

Which looked like a regular clothing store.

Astraea and Shirou then went inside the mystic code store. As they went inside, the inside of the store was filled with mystic codes that looked like clothes made by top designers. As so, Astraea was excited trying out the multiple mystic codes as she picked out multiple mystic codes.

"Sherou, I'm going into the dressing room for a moment. Would you be a dear and wait for me?"

"Sure."

Astraea then went into the dressing room and Shirou waited for her. "I wonder why did Rin, Sakura, and their alternative selves had a problem while seeing Luvia dragging me around? Did she do something bad to them?" he thought as time passed by.

Eventually, the curtain to the dressing opened, revealing Astraea in a familiar outfit Shirou thought he would never see again.

It was Luvia's old dress.

"Well Sheoru, how do I look in this dress?"

Shirou smiled. "It looks great on you Miss Luvia."

Astraea smiled back at him. "Glad that you liked it!" she said excitedly.

As the day went on, Astraea tried on a multitude of dresses, and Shirou said she looked good in all of them. Eventually, Astraea went through all the dresses/mystic codes she brought over and bought them all.

_(A few hours later...)_

"Well, wasn't today a fun day Sherou?" Astraea asked with a smile as they were sitting at a table of a nearby café. After many hours off shopping from other stores followed up by Shirou and Astraea carrying the large number of gifts that came with the shopping, they found a nearby café for a small break.

As Shirou and Luvia were waiting at the table, Shirou noticed the large number of gifts next to Luvia. "Wow. We spent quite a lot today..." Shirou thought as they were waiting for the sweets they ordered.

"Hey Sherou, can I ask you something?" Astraea asked, snapping Shirou out of his trance.

"Hm? Oh sure. What is it?" Shirou replied.

"What do you think of today?"

"Today? Well...it was quite fun actually."

"You think so?"

"Yeah," Shirou said with a smile.

"I see..." Astraea muttered with a blush.

Shirou noticed Astraea's behavior and asked, "Are you okay Luvia? You seem to be quite red."

"Eh?! Oh! It's nothing!" Astraea embarrassingly said.

It was then that the waiter arrived with the sweets they ordered. As they ate, they also had a few chats as well in which some included the earlier events as well as the items they bought as well. Soon, they were finished with the deserts and the waiter came and took the empty plates away.

"Well then...shall we pay up?" Shirou asked.

"W-Wait. There's one more thing that I want to do," Astraea said in embarrassment.

"Well okay. What is it?"

Astraea then pulled a small red box from one of the bags from earlier. She then opened the box up, revealing a small bracelet made out of metal and there was a red jewel in the middle with silver markings.

"This is for you Sherou," Astraea said proudly.

Shirou was in awe of the gift Astraea was about give him. "Are you sure? I mean, don't you want it?"

"Yes. I want you to have this. If anything, this accessory suits you the best, probably even more than me."

Shirou blushed after hearing Astraea's words. "Well...if that's the case...then I accept your gift Luvia," he said with a smile.

Astraea blushed at Shirou's words. Shirou then took the bracelet from the box and placed it on unclothed arm. "How does it look Sherou?" Astraea asked.

Shirou took a quick look at it and said, "It looks great Luvia," with a smile on his face.

Astraea beamed with excitement. "Really?!"

"Yes."

"Well then...I'm glad you like it Sherou!" Astraea said in happiness.

"You're welcome," Shirou said. "Now then...shall we move on then?"

"Yes!"

And Shirou and Astraea continued their day together...


	10. The Kings' Birthday

Shirou felt like he was going to die.

Not by battle, but by exhaustion.

Why?

Because he was cooking up a storm, literally.

"Man. This is going to be a long day..." he thought as he was in Chaldea's kitchen, cooking up multiple foods of the sort. As Shirou was preparing food on the counter, he noticed that the chicken in the oven was finished, proceeded to pull it out of the oven, and left in on a plate. He then resumed to work on the dishes he was cooking on the counter. "Hey Gawain, can you help me with carrying the finished dishes to the tables? My hands are a bit tied now."

"Yes, Queen Shirou!" Gawain excitedly replied as he carefully carried the dishes of food to the other room.

"Good. Lancelot, can you help setting up the decorations?"

"As you wish my queen," Lancelot replied as he started to set up the decorations around the room.

"Tristan, how are master, Mashu, Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth doing with Saber and her alternate versions?"

"They are doing well in distracting them my queen," Tristan replied as he was carrying the bottles of drinks to the other room.

"Good. And Merlin?"

"Not sure, but he did say he got the gifts."

"Well that's a good thing," Shirou thought as he started to cook a lot of hamburgers on the grill along with fries, shakes, onion rings, and fried chicken. As Shirou was cooking, his thoughts wandered to today's event.

Why was Shirou worried about today?

Simple, it's Arturia's birthday today.

And since there were multiple Arturias in Chaldea, that means today is their birthday as well.

Which means Shirou must make a lot of food for the Arturias.

Probably a year's worth of food at least.

While Shirou was cooking, his thoughts wandered to what happened a few days earlier...

_(A few days earlier...)_

"Saber's birthday is in a few days?" Ritsuka, Da Vinci, and Mashu asked.

"Yes," Shirou replied.

"Which saber?" Ritsuka asked.

Shirou sighed. "Arturia."

"Okay...but why are you asking all three of us for this? Isn't this well...a private thing for only you to know about?" Da Vinci asked.

"Well...there's something I need both of your help for..."

"What is it?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "Da Vinci, I need you to build a giant oven enough to house a cake the size of a dinner table. Master and Mashu, can both of you help me stall Saber and her alternate versions until the time is right?"

Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci was stunned to hear those words out of Shirou's mouth. "What?" they asked in unison.

Shirou sighed. "Yeah."

Ritsuka and Mashu just gasped and Da Vinci took a few deep breaths and mentally slapped herself to see if she was awake. And just like that, she wasn't dreaming.

"Is that too much to ask of you Da Vinci?" Shirou asked.

"Huh? Oh no, it's not that I can't make an oven as big enough to house a cake the size of a dinner table. It's just that well...one, how are you going to do all of that, and two...don't you think you're going a bit overboard with the cake?" Da Vinci asked.

Shirou chucked as he heard the words, "a bit overboard with the cake."

"What's so funny?" Ritsuka asked.

"Master, you probably may not know this, but I used to be Saber's master when I was alive."

Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci were shocked again. "Really?"

"Yeah, and if there's one thing that I learned, it's that you should always prepare a lot of food for her when it's time for meals."

"No way," Ritsuka said.

"Yeah. And since there are multiple versions of her..."

"The amount of food needed will be a lot," Mashu said.

"You have no idea..." Shirou muttered.

"I can see that..." Da Vinci said as she, Mashu, and Ritsuka imagined a scenario of all the Arturias just running up to Shirou with glowing eyes and saying, "FOOD!"

"Yeah...anyways, can all three of you do it?"

"Well...I can do it...although it's going to take a few days..."

"Thanks, Da Vinci. Ritsuka? Mashu?"

"Well I can I guess," he replied with a shrug. "Although how can I know that you're done with the preparations?"

Shirou then handed Ritsuka a smartphone and said, "When I give you a message saying that the preparations are done on the smartphone. Got it?"

"That I can do," Ritsuka said with a smirk.

Shirou sighed in relief. "Thanks. Mashu?"

Mashu quickly regained her composure. "I-I'm not sure if I can do this, but I'll try my best! And plus...the heroic spirit inside of me wants to do this as well."

Shirou smiled. "Thank you," he said as he was about to leave, but Da Vinci stopped him.

"Hold on, I'm not done yet," she said with a mischievous grin.

Shirou gulped at looking at the grin of hers. "W-What?"

"In exchange...you have to agree to test something for me later in the future."

Shirou sighed as he knew there was a catch to this. "Deal."

"Good!"

Shirou then quickly left Da Vinci's workshop and went to find the Knights of the Round and Merlin. After minutes of wandering around Chaldea, Shirou found all of them in the recreational room. "Perfect." he thought as he saw all of them.

"Mother?" Mordred asked.

"Queen Shirou?" Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth asked.

"Oh Shirou, how's life with the Arturias? I trust that you been keeping them satisfied?" Merlin said in a mischievous tone.

"Haha, very funny Merlin," Shirou said in a sarcastic tone before turning his attention to the rest of the group. "Anyways, I need all of your help here."

The Knights of the Round then listened to what Shirou has to say.

"Saber's birthday is within a few days and I need all of your help in setting up a giant dinner party for her and her alternate versions. Will all of you help me?" Shirou asked.

Instantly, the Knights of the Round landed on one knee and said, "As you wish mother/Queen Shirou."

Shirou smiled after hearing their answer. "Good. And Merlin?"

Merlin smiled as well. "Anything for my student and her alternate versions and her lover as well."

"Great. Now here's the plan I need all of you to follow on. Bedivere, Mordred, Gareth, master, and Mashu will try to distract Saber and her alternate versions from finding out about the party while me, Gawain, Lancelot, and Tristan will get the decorations and set up the party room. As for Merlin, he's in charge for getting the gifts."

"Master is involved in this as well?" Gawain asked.

"Yes," Shirou replied.

"And what about you mother?" Mordred asked.

"Simple, I'm in charge of cooking the food. Is that okay with everyone here?"

"Yes!" They all exclaimed happily with passion. After all, within in a few days is their king's birthday, and their queen is asking them to prepare a surprise party for her and her alternative versions.

"All right then...let's get started..." Shirou said.

For the next few days, Shirou, the Knights of the Round, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Merlin were working their butts off enacting their plan of giving Arturia a surprise birthday party. Gawain, Tristan, and Lancelot bought all the birthday decorations at the stores in Chaldea, Ritsuka, Mashu, Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth distracted Arturia and her alternate versions from finding out about the party, Merlin oversaw getting them gifts, Da Vinci made a giant oven huge enough to house a cake the size of a dinner table, and Shirou used one of Chaldea's recreation rooms, reserved and cleared out the space, and added some tables over there.

And finally, on the last day, Shirou oversaw making the food.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Hope I can finish all of this in time..." Shirou thought as he prepared another dish. Just then, Merlin came into the room with a giant bag behind him. "Merlin? You got the gifts?"

"I did...Queen Shirou..." Merlin huffed as he was catching breath. "I got...the lion plushies...like you asked for..."

"Good. Now wrap them in gift boxes and carry them to the other room"

"On it...Queen Shirou," Merlin teasingly said as he began to wrap them in gift boxes with his magic.

It was then that Gawain, Lancelot, and Tristan came into the room and said, "Queen Shirou, the preparations are complete."

"Good. Now you can help me carry the dishes to the recreational room," he said as his direction went back into the food he was cooking. "I hope that Mordred, Bedivere, Gareth, master, and Mashu are keeping Saber and her alternate versions busy..."

_(Meanwhile, in a singularity...)_

"Whew! That's done!" Mordred exclaimed while she cleaved a monster in half. Meanwhile, Bedivere and Gareth were just about as done as well with their side of the singularity and were coming up to Mordred to check on her progress.

"How are things being on your end Mordred?" Bedivere asked.

"It's going well at least. Father and her alternate versions seem to not notice anything weird about our actions right now," Mordred replied. "How about you guys?"

"We're doing as well along with master and Mashu," Gareth said joyfully.

"You told him we're on to this as well?"

"Yes. Da Vinci seems to be on this as well. Right now, she should have made a giant oven for the cake for our king and her alternate versions' party," Bedivere said.

"All right-oh shit! Here they come now!" Mordred exclaimed as they saw Arturia and her alternate versions along with Ritsuka and Mashu coming over.

"Hey Mordred! You're finished on your end?" Ritsuka yelled out.

"Yup master! Got them all pretty good!" Mordred replied. Ritsuka and Mashu came over to her, Bedivere, Gareth, and it prompted her to whisper, "Did you receive the signal yet?" in a soft voice.

"Nope. Not yet," he replied in a soft voice.

"Geez. I know that mother must cook a lot of food for father and her alternate versions, but just how much?" Mordred whispered.

"Just by the look on his face...he probably must have made quite a lot in his past..." Mashu whispered.

"Jeez, now I feel bad for Queen Shirou..." Gareth whispered.

"Me too..." Bedivere whispered.

"What are you five talking about?"

Ritsuka, Mashu, Mordred, Gareth, and Bedivere nearly jumped and turned around to see Arturia and her alternate selves staring at them.

"Huh?! Oh uh...nothing!" Ritsuka nervously stuttered as he tried to hide the secret.

"Really master?" Arturia Alter said as she was suddenly in front of Master.

"Y-Yeah..a-anyways...let's finish this singularity," Mashu quickly said before leaving with Ritsuka, Mordred, Bedivere, and Gareth in a hurry.

Arturia and her alternate versions were confused about Ritsuka, Mashu, Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth's actions just now. As the groups were walking, the Arturias were talking to each other.

"What was up with master, Mashu, Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth lately?" Arturia asked. "They've never been so secretive before."

"How should I know?" Arturia Alter asked. "They never told me anything about their actions. The nerve of them."

"Do you think they're up to something?" Arturia Lily asked.

"Maybe. What do you think it is?" Lancer Arturia asked.

"I don't know, and I don't care," Lancer Arturia Alter replied.

"Honestly, I have no clue either," Ruler Arturia said.

"Now that you mentioned it...Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, and Merlin were acting weird lately too," Archer Arturia replied.

"You're right about that," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"Yeah. They've been kind of ignoring us and keeping something from us too," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Ah mou! This is annoying me so badly right now!" Mysterious Heroine X yelled out.

"Calm down X," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Yeah. Calm down younger me," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

Meanwhile, Ritsuka, Mashu, Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth were walking down a path, hoping that a message from Shirou would come through. "Come on Shirou! I can't hold them off like this forever you know!" he thought as he kept walking.

After a few hours in the forest, as fate demanded it, Ritsuka's smartphone vibrated in his pocket, prompting him to check it out. As so, he saw the message.

The message said: "Everything is done."

"Yes!" Ritsuka thought with a smile before he whispered to Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth, "Shirou's done his part."

"Mother has?" Mordred asked in a soft tone.

"Yes."

"Then that means we can finish this singularity immediately correct?" Bedivere asked.

"Yes," Mashu replied.

"Well finally! I thought I couldn't keep up hiding this secret forever," Gareth quietly moaned.

"Yeah, anyway, let's get this job done!"

Afterwards, Ritsuka, Mashu, Bedivere, Mordred, Gareth, Arturia and her alternate versions cleared the singularity and got rayshifted back to Chaldea. As soon as they returned to Chaldea, the Arturias proceeded to go to the cafeteria, but Ritsuka, Mashu, Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth proceeded to escort them somewhere else.

"Where are we going master?" Arturia asked.

"Oh. Well...let's just say...somewhere a bit...special."

The Arturias were confused with Ritsuka's explanation.

However, their confusion came to an end when they were brought to a dark room. When they entered the room, they were greeted with a huge surprise as the lights went on.

Suddenly, the sounds of party clickers went on and confetti fell onto the ground.

"HAPPPY BIRTHDAY MY KING/SABER!"

What Arturia and her alternate versions saw surprised them. Inside the room was Shirou, Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, and Merlin longside with multiple plates of food and glasses of drinks, decorations on the walls, and gift boxes on the side.

However, the one thing that shocked them the most was the giant cake on the table.

Which was about the length of a table and was huge.

And it said, "Happy Birthday Arturia."

For the first time, the Arturias were in a loss of words as they looked at the marvel in front of them. As they looked at the food and cake, they immediately knew the reason why the Knights of the Round, Merlin, Ritsuka, and Mashu were acting so weird lately.

Shirou got them involved in this plan of his.

And it made them cry on the inside.

Because they couldn't believe that Shirou remembered such a thing.

"S-Shirou...did you make all of this?" Arturia studderly asked.

"Yes," he said with a smile.

"But why?"

"Well...considering that today is well...your birthday...so I figured why not celebrate it along with your alternate versions too since well...they're you as well," Shirou said sheepishly.

At that moment, all the Arturias felt like crying because Shirou has planned all of this for just herself and her alternate versions.

And it was beautiful.

After a few moments, all the Arturias said in unison, "THANK YOU SHIROU!" with tears coming out from their eyes.

Shirou smiled and said, "No problem. Now then...shall we start the party?"

As so the party started with all the Arturias, the Knights of the Round, Merlin, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Shirou chowing down on the food, and it was a joyous sight. The alters were snacking on the junk food while the non-altered versions and Mordred were eating anything on sight, Merlin singing songs, Lancelot trying to get along with Mashu, Gawain praising Shirou for his efforts, Tristan drinking, and Shirou was watching the whole thing. When it was time for the cake, everyone got a slice and it was delicious for all of them. Of course, like earlier, the Arturias and Mordred wanted seconds of the cake.

After the food was gone, the Arturias then received the gift boxes and opened them up, revealing the lion plushies. Of course, they loved it.

Shirou watched the spectacle with a smile on his face. As so, Arturia suddeny came up and sat next to him.

"Shirou."

"Saber?"

Arturia smiled. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For everything that you did just now."

Shirou then smiled as well. "No problem Saber."

Arturia then placed a finger on his lips. "You don't have to call me that anymore. Just Arturia is fine. That goes for my other versions as well."

"I see...then...no problem Arturia."

Arturia blushed after hearing Shirou say those words. "B-By the way Shirou."

"What is it Arturia?"

"You said you got one gift for every one of us, but I see another gift in front of us."

"Really? Where is it?"

Then suddenly, Arturia gave Shirou a kiss on the cheek and both were blushing madly.

"I-It's you," Arturia said with a blush.

Shirou was stunned at the action that Arturia just did, and it also received some attention from the others. However, that's when Arturia's alternate versions saw the action she just did, and decided to join in.

"Hey. Leave some for us too," Arturia Alter said.

"Y-Yeah! It's not fair that you get to hog Shirou all to yourself!" Arturia Lily exclaimed.

"Even if you're me, that doesn't mean you get to keep him all to yourself," Lancer Arturia said.

"Yeah. I want a piece of him too," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"As well as I," Ruler Arturia said.

"Yeah. If anything, we should all share him," Archer Arturia said.

"I agree with that," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"I do as well," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Even though you lot may be Saber-faces, at least we should all agree to take turns kissing him," Mysterious Heroine X said.

"Yeah. I want Shirou too," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"So do I," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

That's when Arturia's alternate versions ganged up on Shirou, making him nervous.

"Uh...Arturia?" Shirou asked.

"Yes Shirou?" They all said in unison, including the original herself.

Shirou gulped as he just got himself in a situation one could hopelessly escape from. He then called out to the Knights of the Round, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Merlin for some help, but they refused.

"Sorry Queen Shirou, but I must follow my king's order and that is to not help you in this situation," Gawain stated.

"Me too," Lancelot said.

"Me three," Tristan said.

"Me four," Bedivere said.

"Me five," Gareth said.

"Sorry mother, but you sort of put yourself in this situation here," Mordred said with a blush.

"Sorry Shirou, but seeing you in this situation with Arturia and her alternate versions just makes my incubus blood excited," Merlin said in a teasing tone.

Ritsuka slapped his hands together in a praying pose and said, "Sorry, but I don't want to die here."

"Sorry, but I don't think I can help you here Shirou-san," Mashu said in an apologetic tone while bowing.

Shirou sighed as he looked back at the Arturias staring at him.

"Go easy on me..." he said, knowing that his fate was sealed.

And then the Arturias proceeded to kiss him...


	11. Conversations with the Emiya Family

It was one thing seeing your dead adopted father alive in the flesh although with a few major alterations, but seeing him as a heroic spirit?

That was something Shirou did not expect.

What's more is that he's also a counter guardian.

A protector of humanity.

An agent of Alaya, the will of humanity.

The same as heroic spirit EMIYA and EMIYA Alter.

This was Shirou's thoughts about heroic spirit EMIYA (Assassin) after meeting him for the first time and going with him on a few singularities with him.

And this...is one of their stories...

Shirou was in a ruin of a town with Ritsuka, Mashu, and EMIYA (Assassin) as they were trying to find the cause of the singularity in the era they were in.

During that time, Shirou was trying to find a way to start a conversation with EMIYA (Assassin).

But like always, his E-rank luck seems to get into the way of things.

In the form of ambushes from monsters/shadow servants and some other things as well.

As so, Shirou could barely get any time to talk to him.

Up until now.

Right now, Shirou, Ritsuka, Mashu, and EMIYA (Assassin) were resting at the ruins as night has fallen upon them. Ritsuka and Mashu fell asleep early because of exhaustion of earlier battles. As Shirou looked at them, he then covered them with his white kimono to prevent them from catching a cold.

"Master...you're going to catch a cold at this rate along with Mashu..." Shirou thought as he looked at them sleeping peacefully. As he looked at them, he noticed that EMIYA (Assassin) was missing. "Where did Kiritsugu go?" he thought as he looked around the area nearby him.

As so, he noticed him on top of the rubble of a building.

"Ah. There he is," he thought as he began to walk towards him.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was one thing seeing your family members from alternate timelines in which included three little girls (one which is a magical girl, the other is the other side of the magical girl manifested by acquiring a class card, an alternate version of the first girl who happened to be a pseudo servant vessel), a homunculus who happened to be your wife in an alternate timeline who is also the vessel of the holy grail, three versions of your adoptive son from alternate timelines, and apparently a little girl who happened to be one of said adoptive sons' little sister from an alternate timeline.

And then there's the servant in the tiger animal pajamas who would be considered the caretaker of the family in one timeline.

The funny thing about all of that is...each of those timelines didn't have him become a counter guardian.

And for Kiritsugu (AKA EMIYA Assassin), it was quite a thing to hold grasp of.

"Man...still can't believe that I have this many family members from alternate timelines. It's just...way to crazy to wrap all of this around..." he thought as he looked up at the moon and the stars in the night.

As he was looking up at the night sky, he didn't notice Shirou coming over to his side and sitting next to him.

"Oh...it's you...Shirou wasn't it?" EMIYA (Assassin) said as he looked at him.

"Yeah...old man..." Shirou replied as he sat down.

For a while, silence came between the two and it was getting awkward.

Eventually, EMIYA (Assassin) broke the ice first.

"Listen, just to make things straight, I'm not the same man that you know. I'm just an assassin. A counter guardian for humanity." EMIYA (Assassin) stated.

"I know that. It's just that...every time whenever I see your face, it brings back memories," Shirou replied.

EMIYA (Assassin) sighed. "What kind of memories?"

"Some fond memories...I would say."

Silence returned between the two for a while until EMIYA (Assassin) asked him a question.

"Hey. Can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"What was I like in your timeline?"

"Well...you were kind...and did care about me a lot...and gave me some helpful advice and lessons as well."

"Really?"

"Yeah. You even inspired me to become a hero of justice."

EMIYA (Assassin) chucked after hearing those last words. "Hero of justice...huh...guess his other version of me was the same as me..." he thought as he processed what Shirou told him. "And I suppose you're one now?"

"You could say that...in a way..."

"Is that so...by the way, how did your version of me met you?"

For a second, the tense silence returned as EMIYA (Assassin) asked that question. At that point, EMIYA (Assassin) knew he hit a sore spot in Shirou's life.

Eventually, the silence ended as Shirou took a deep breath and gave his reply.

"Well...it all started from a fire called the Great Fuyuki Fire. Apparently, the Great Fuyuki Fire was a side effect of the conclusion of the fourth holy grail war that took place at the same time. At that time, I was normal kid. Had a family, friends, and then..."

"The fire took everything from you I suppose?" EMIYA (Assassin) asked.

"Yes. It took my family, my friends, and even my memories away from me. I got caught up in the fire and was trapped under some burning rubble. I would have even died if it wasn't for Kiritsugu."

"My alternate version saved you?"

"Yeah. He dug me out of the rubble. As he dug me out of the rubble, his face looked like a face of joy, knowing that he saved me from the flaming hell that would have killed me. The face he made that day would be carved into my mind forever. Afterwards, I was in the hospital and over there, he found me and adopted me. And that's the story of how he and I met."

At that point, EMIYA (Assassin) was surprised at the events Shirou just told him. "To think such an event happened in his timeline..." he thought as he processed the information Shiou told him, which prompted him to ask him another question. "Say, how is my other version doing right now?"

Shirou let out a sad face and a sigh before saying, "He's...passed away..."

"I see..."

Silence then came between the two again.

"You know what's funny? The setting right now reminds me of the last conversation I had with Kiritsugu when I was alive. The starry night, the moon in the night, everything about right reminds me of the time I had a conversation with Kiritsugu about being a hero of justice," Shirou said with a tear coming from his eye.

"Shirou..."

"I know that you're not the Kiritsugu that I know of, but...looking at your face brings back memories..."

EMIYA (Assassin) then rubbed Shirou's head with his hand and gave him a head pat. "Well...even though I may not be the Kiritsugu that you know of...let's try to get along with each other. Is that okay with you?" he said.

Shirou smiled and said, "Yes. I would like that."

For the first time in his life, EMIYA (Assassin) smiled back at him and said something funny. "Well...let's just hope that you get along with your adoptive mother," he jokingly said.

Shirou chuckled. "Considering that she's an adult version of Illya, I think I'll get along with her."

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If there was one thing that you should not give to Irisviel Von Einsbern, it would be a car.

And Shirou learned that the hard way.

Literally.

Right now, Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu was holding on to their car seats and life itself as Irisviel was driving around in car like a madman (or madwoman in this case).

And why was Irisviel driving a car?

Because the singularity Shirou and Irisviel were in happened to take place in modern times. In the singularity, Ritsuka was wondering how to finish the singularity faster to save time.

And it so happens that they spotted a car...in good condition...with the keys inside for some reason.

That's when Irisviel took her chance and placed herself into the driver's seat immediately, confusing Shirou and the others for a moment. While nervous about letting Irisviel in the driver's seat, Irisviel did tell them she did have some experience driving.

It was when Irisviel started turning like crazy that Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu regretted their decision letting Irisviel drive.

"Yahoo!" Irisviel exclaimed happily as she was turning around in every corner of the street.

Shirou felt like he was going to barf. "Man, never felt this sick from someone else's driving...who taught Irisviel to drive like this...?" he thought as Irisviel took another hard turn, making him cover his mouth in fear of a gag reflex.

Ritsuka and Mashu on the other hand...immediately passed out.

At that point, Shirou didn't even to know to either envy or pity them for passing out in which the envy for them passing out is that they don't have to experience this anymore and the pity for them is that they experienced Irisviel's driving.

"Uh Irisviel...who taught you to drive like this?" Shirou asked.

"I practiced it myself! And call me mom!" Irisviel exclaimed with a grin as she took a hard turn right.

"But don't you think you're driving a bit crazy? I mean...you don't have to take it hard on the turns..." Shirou moaned as he was feeling sick from Irisviel's turning.

"But that would be boring! I mean dangerous!" Irisviel pouted as she took another turn left. "What if the enemy attacks us?"

"I suppose so..." Shirou said before he noticed something. "Wait, stop." He then stepped on the brake pedal.

Irisviel was confused why Shirou stepped on the brake pedal. "Shirou, why did you do that?" she asked. Shirou then pointed at the sight in front of her to tell her why.

There was a small army of shadow servants in front of them and it looks like the only way to get past them was to fight them off.

And the problem was that both Ritsuka and Mashu were unconscious now, leaving the group down to two servants.

"Oh my. This looks like trouble here," Irisviel said.

"No kidding," Shirou said as he looked at the small army of shadow servants. As he glanced at them, he began formulating escape plans in his mind. "What should we do? There's a lot of shadow servants here. I could unleash one of my noble phantasms here, but I don't want to bring harm to master and Mashu here."

However, as Shirou was thinking, Irisviel already had an idea.

She stepped on the pedal, put the gear into reverse, and started driving in reverse.

"What the?! Mom?! What are you doing?!"

"Isn't it obvious? We're escaping of course!" Irisviel exclaimed.

And the group drove far away from the small army...

_(A few hours later...)_

"Uggghhhhh...I feel really sick..." Ritsuka moaned as he woke up.

"You okay master?"

Ritsuka knew that voice and turned his head to see the source of it. It was Shirou along with Irisviel around a campfire. "Yeah...I think so..." he moaned. "Where's Mashu?"

"She's sleeping in another area," Shirou said as he pointed to where she was, which was by Irisviel's side. "Well I'm glad that you're safe."

"Yeah. Anyways, where are we?"

"We're in a forest right now," Irisviel replied.

"What happened when me and Mashu passed out?"

"Well...we encountered a small army of shadow servants and had to retreat."

"I see. Anyways, we'll be fighting those guys again, so I suggest you to rest master," Shirou warned. Ritsuka then nodded before falling asleep. As Shirou was watching Ritsuka falling asleep, Irisviel noticed the glance Shirou was giving to Ritsuka, smiled, and let out a giggle.

Shirou noticed the giggle and asked, "What's so funny?"

"Oh...it's just that you act like Illya and Miyu's brother, even from another universe," Irisviel said.

Shirou chucked, now knowing that his counterpart in Prisma Illya's universe acted like the same as himself.

However, that's when Irisviel asked him a question that shocked him.

"Hey? What was I like in your universe?"

Shirou stayed quiet.

"Shirou?"

"Hm? Oh...it's nothing."

But Irisviel wasn't going to fall for that excuse.

"I take it that you didn't meet me in your universe?"

"Yeah..." Shirou muttered.

Irisviel sighed, but she continued. "What was Illya like in your universe?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "Well...the first time I met her...she tried to kill me."

That startled Irisviel immediately. "Ehhhhh?! Illya?! The clumsy Illya that we know of tried to kill you in your universe?! How?!"

"Well...it was because of her grandfather's lies that she tried to kill me in which the lies were about Kiritsugu abandoning her for me. Anyways, the first time we met, she tried to kill me with berserker."

"Wow."

"However, after telling the truth about Kiritsugu and berserker's defeat, she calmed down and stopped trying to kill me."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Afterwards, she started to live with even after the holy grail war."

"I see..." Irisviel was relieved when his world's version of Illya made up with him. "Hey, you were saved by Kiritsugu when you were young right? What was it like living with him?" she asked.

"Well...living with him was...quite fun. Although I'll admit, I wouldn't let him in the kitchen at all times when it comes to preparing meals because...well..."

"He wasn't good at cooking, right?"

Shirou chucked. "That's an understatement. In fact, he tried to make a fried egg once, and the result was rather a black mess."

Irisviel laughed at what Shirou just said. "Really?"

"Yup. It was so bad that I had to learn to cook for him."

"Wow. Seems you had a lot on your hands."

"Not quite actually. I had a lot of fond memories with him."

"I can see that."

"Yeah."

For a few seconds, there was silence between the two until Shirou started speaking again.

"You know...I never thought that I would be able to have a mom again...not after what happened to me in the past. I mean...the thought of it never came into my mind."

"Shirou..."

"It's not that I hate it or anything...it's just that I never knew this type of thing would come..."

Then suddenly, Irisviel then gave Shirou a giant hug.

"M-Mom?!"

"Shirou, even though we may not be blood related or related in the same timeline, I still think of you as my adopted son," Irisviel said with a smile. "If you have any troubles, just call me. Okay?"

Shirou thought of that and said, "Yes. I would like that mom," with a smile.

Irisviel smiled back. "Good. Now there's one more question I want to ask of you..."

Shirou listened to what his adoptive mom has to say.

"Which one out of the girls do you choose?"

Shirou blushed at what Irisviel just said. "M-Mom!"

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou Emiya has seen and experienced many things.

But this? This was something he did not expect.

Because it was clearly impossible that something like this could exist and happen at the same time.

And that would be his caretaker, Fujimura Taiga, as a heroic spirit in Chaldea.

"Okay...even though it's been a while since I arrived at Chaldea, one thing that still puzzles me is that how in the root is Fuji-nee a heroic spirit?! I mean seriously, all that I know of her is that she's just a schoolteacher who comes over at my house every to eat food! I'm pretty sure she hasn't done any heroic thing of the sort. In fact, does the word "heroic" come in her dictionary?! This is crazy! What's more, the clothes she's wearing are tiger pajamas! She's not a kid you know!" Shirou thought as he was walking down in one of Chaldea's hallways.

As he was walking, he didn't notice a certain tiger of Fuyuki coming up behind him...

"Shirou!" Taiga yelled out.

Before Shirou could even react, Taiga glomped on him and gave him a giant hug on the back, making him fall.

"Ow! What the...Fuji-nee...what are you doing?" Shirou moaned as he now knew who the attacker was.

"What? It's been a while since you saw your caretaker, and this is how you treat me?" she pouted.

Shirou chucked. She still hasn't changed, even after turning into a heroic spirit. "It's been a while Fuji nee."

"Yeah! Way too long, I think! I mean when was the last time I saw you?!" Taiga exclaimed. "After you left for London with Rin, you practically disappeared off the earth without a trace! And when I finally meet you again, you became a what Chaldea would call, "A heroic spirit." What's more, there's multiple sabers, Rins, Sakura-chans, Illyas, and Kiritsugu who looked like he got a massive sunburn and dyed his hair! Not only that, but apparently every Saber, Rin, Sakura-chan, Illya, and two other girls know you even though I don't know them! Just where the heck where were you after all this time?! I demand some answers Shirou!"

Shirou's mind just blanked out from Taiga's yelling. "Aren't you a heroic spirit too...?"

"Well?" she asked.

Shirou sighed. "Let's just explain this in my room. Is that okay?"

Taiga huffed after hearing Shirou's answer. "Fine!"

After that getting up from Taiga's sudden attack, Shirou then took Taiga to his room, where they can discuss what happened privately. Shirou then sat down on his bed while Taiga sat down on a chair nearby.

"All right now let's continue from where we started. Where were you after you left with Rin to London?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying his story. "Well...it's kind of a long story here. You see, after I left with Rin to go to London with her, I went to study at a school for mages called the Clock Tower and-"

"Wait. Did you say, "school for mages?""

"Y-Yes?"

Taiga took a deep breath before yelling, "MAGIC IS REAL?! WAIT...YOU BECAME A MAGE?!"

"Yes Fuji-nee. Anyways, can you let me finish?"

Taiga quickly shut up.

"Anyways, afterwards, I stared studying at the Clock Tower with Rin and had a better grasp at myself and what I am. After I graduated from the clock tower, I became a freelance magus, helping people whenever if I can. However, at the same time, I was wandering the world because of a certain promise."

"And what promise was that?" Taiga asked.

Shirou paused for a moment before saying, "To see a certain someone again..."

"I see...but isn't it said that you broke that promise now that you're in Chaldea?"

"Not quite. I did fulfill the promise...although it ended in a way I did not expect."

"Well that's nice, although now I have a bunch of other questions to ask for you."

"Go ahead."

"First of all, that one girl with the blond drills that keeps calling you "Sherou" and two other girls which one of them has black hair and the other looks like a tanned version of Illya that calls you "Onii-chan," just how are they connected to you?" she asked menacingly.

Shirou sighed before he continued. "First of all, the first girl you were talking about is Luvia who was my classmate in the Clock Tower. The other girls you were taking about are Kuro and Miyu who happened to be my little sisters from an alternate universe.

Taiga's eyes popped out from the second explanation. "EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!"

Shirou covered his ears from Taiga's shouting. "Yeah," he stated.

"But...how...wow, Chaldea can be confusing sometimes..." Taiga muttered.

"Yeah...anything else?"

"Just one more question...how did you get here?"

"Well I had myself fused with, in terms you can understand, a spirit of the dead...and got here because of master..."

Taiga, once again, was shocked to hear that coming out of Shirou's mouth. "Spirits of the dead, alternate timelines, so many Sabers, Rins, Sakura-chans, Illyas, an alternate Kiritsugu, magic and mages are real, and apparently there's a school for mages in London...wow."

"You okay over there Fuji-nee?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, it's just taking time to process this type of information after all..."

"I can feel that," Shirou said as he remembered the time he had to learn all of this when he was plunged into the fifth holy grail war in Fuyuki.

"Yeah...so that means that Saber was a heroic spirit the first time we met...huh?"

"Yeah."

Taiga took a deep breath before asking, "Why didn't you tell me this? I'm your caretaker you know!"

Shirou sighed. "It's because I didn't want to worry and freak you out."

"But-"

"Fuji-nee, I know that you still think of me as a little kid, but I'm already a grown up now. I can make my own decisions and figure out where I can go from here on out. If you truly care about me, then can you trust me to let me make my own decisions?"

Taiga was shocked at the question Shirou just asked her. "Is this really Shirou? The little kid that was staying with Kiritsugu?"

"Fuji-nee?"

Taiga took a deep breath and said, "If that is your wish...then I won't stop you. But...just tell me whenever you are in trouble, okay?"

Shirou smiled, "Yeah. I'll do that Fuji-nee."

Taiga smirked. "Good. Then we're at an agreement then!"

Shirou sighed as the long conversation between him and his caretaker was over. Taiga then soon left, leaving Shirou alone.

However, he remembered he had one question to ask Taiga.

_"Ah, I forgot to ask her how she became a heroic spirit..."_

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was in an awkward situation.

Why? Simple, he was stuck in a room with his alternate future self who happened to be a counter guardian along with an altered version of himself as well.

And how did they got stuck in a room together?

Blame Irisviel Von Einsbern for that.

"So...I take it that you two have been brought here because of her?" Shirou asked.

Both EMIYA and EMIYA Alter sighed.

"I'll take that as a yes then."

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter stared at each other because there was nothing else in the room. As they were staring at each other, EMIYA thought, "Okay, this is not how I want to spend one of my days. Just how did Irisviel manage to grab both my younger self and my altered self in here? And what's more, she programed the room to be locked at her own will! So now we can't get out of here! What is she up to?!"

"Okay, this is something that I would rather not want to be in. I mean, it's one thing to see your alternate self who isn't altered by a goddess of pleasure, but to see your younger self? That's it, I'm done here." EMIYA Alter thought.

"Okay...this is weird. I mean, it's one thing to have Archer in the same room here, but another version of Archer who happened to be altered, mind broken, and apparently has a bunch of cracks all over his body...this is not how I expect today to end up," Shirou thought.

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter took a deep breath before of thinking one more thing.

"Just how did I end up here?" they thought in unison.

_(A few minutes ago...)_

Shirou was walking down Chaldea's hall minding his own business. When suddenly, Irisviel came out of nowhere and asked Shirou for something.

"Help? With what mom?"

"Oh nothing...just something small," Irisviel replied with a giggle. "Can you?"

"Well...I guess..."

"Yes!" Irisviel exclaimed as she grabbed Shirou by the arm and dragged him to a certain room. As they got into the room, Iriviel then pushed Shirou into the room and what he saw in there made things awkward for him.

Because EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were there, sitting on the ground.

"Uh mom...just what is...going on...here...?" Shirou asked as he turned around to see the door closed. "Mom?!"

Shirou then tried to open the door but it failed. He then noticed that there was note on the door.

It said, "Shirou, have some talk time with your alternate selves! Love, Irisviel."

"Mom..." Shirou groaned.

_(Back to the present...)_

Right now, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were staring at each other, hoping that someone would come and rescue them.

But sadly, time passed by, and no one was trying to find them.

Eventually, to break the awkward silence, Shirou started off the conversation.

"So...how did mom rope you two into this situation?"

EMIYA took a long sigh before saying, "She just dragged me here."

"I see. And you?" Shirou asked EMIYA Alter.

"Same as him."

"I see..."

The silence returned. For a while, nobody said anything again.

It was then that EMIYA asked Shirou an important question.

"Emiya Shirou, I have something to ask of you." he stated.

Shirou listened.

"Did you ever become the hero of justice you ever wanted to be?"

Shirou took a long sigh before saying, "Yes. However, I did it for a different reason than the one I had a long time ago."

"Oh? And what other reason would that be?" he asked.

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "To see Arturia again."

This got both EMIYA and EMIYA Alter interested.

"You see, after the fifth holy grail war in my timeline, I made a promise to myself to see Arturia again where she was. I then went to study at the Clock Tower with Rin to get a better grasp of my origin and practice my tracing. Afterwards, I went on a journey to find while saving people in the process, to honor her memory and her wishes."

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were quiet.

"During my journey, I realized something. You were right Archer. It's true that I can't save everyone, but that doesn't mean that I can't do anything. It may be true that my ideals were borrowed from Kiritsugu, and they were hypocritical, and was a result from a selfish desire to escape the hell I've experienced, but still I went through it, just for the people that I've believed in, including Arturia."

For a moment, EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were stunned at their younger self.

"Just one question. Did you regret the path you went on?" EMIYA asked.

Shirou smiled. "Nope. I had no regrets."

"And did you make the deal with Alaya?" EMIYA Alter asked.

"Nope. I rejected it."

For a moment, EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were glad that their younger self didn't make the same mistake they did many years ago. They were happy that their past self managed to not fall in despair from his dreams and ideals, managed to stay as himself, and didn't sell his soul to Alaya for eternity.

Not only that, but he also managed to save Arturia's heart as well, unlike in their timelines.

"By the way...how did you become a heroic spirit?" EMIYA asked.

"Well...let's just say...I fused myself with Sengo Muramasa."

This got them interested suddenly.

"Sengo Muramasa? The demonic blacksmith?"

"Yup."

"How did that happen?" EMIYA Alter asked.

Shirou smiled as he started to tell the story. "Well..."

Meanwhile, Irisviel was watching the conversation between Shirou and his alternate selves and was happy with the results.


	12. Mordred's Day with Shirou

"Mother! Let's hurry up already! We don't want to keep master waiting!"

"I'll be there in a moment Mordred."

Shirou then took his katana out of a bandit's dead body and proceeds to go where Mordred is. As Shirou walked toward's Mordred's location, his thoughts wondered back to what happened a few hours ago.

"Man, never knew Mordred was this crazy..." he thought.

_(A few hours ago...)_

"You want me to spend some time with Mordred?" Shirou asked Ritsuka and Da Vinci.

"Yes," they replied in unison.

"Why?"

"Well...it was Arturia's idea," Da Vinci said.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Apparently, she and her alternate versions think it's a good idea for Mordred to spend some time with you."

"She thought of that?"

"Yes."

"I see...so you want me to spend time with her then?"

"Exactly. What do you think?"

"Well...I suppose I can. Plus, Mordred could use some help dealing with her issues considering her upbringing and I would also like to learn a lot about her."

"Excellent! Now just wait here to let me call the others," Ritsuka said.

Ritsuka then left the room, leaving Shirou and Da Vinci alone in the summoning room. A few minutes later, Ritsuka returned with Mordred and Mashu in tow.

As Mordred saw Shirou, she was confused seeing him.

_"Eh? Why is mother here? Don't tell me father planned this...not that I'm complaining, this would be a good time to learn more about mother."_

"All right Ritsuka, Mashu, Shirou, and Mordred. The side mission you four are going to be rayshifted into is a modern one which involves a certain group of bandits. Originally, these bandits were supposed to be dead and shouldn't exist, but for some reason, they're still alive and managed to say intact even in the modern world."

"I see, and I suppose that our mission is to kill them off?" Mordred asked.

"Exactly Mordred. Their base should be in a forest," Da Vinci replied.

"Well then, that should be easy! I'll cut them up easily!" Mordred exclaimed.

"Don't get too hasty Mordred. The enemy could always have a secret weapon behind their backs to turn the tides against us. And when that happens, we're screwed," Shirou said.

"Huh? Just what kind of weapon would these bandits hide?" Mordred sneered.

"I'm just saying to be wary of things just in case. You never know what the enemy may have."

"In other words, Mordred, don't get too cocky," Ritsuka said.

"I got it, I got it," she mumbled.

"Good," Shirou said with a smile while rubbing her hair.

Mordred immediately blushed at Shirou's touch. "Y-You don't have to touch me mother!" she said while moving her head.

"You don't like it?" Shirou asked. Mordred stayed silent after hearing that. "She must have a bad unbringing then...wonder what happened to her..." he thought.

"Um...can we go now?" Mashu asked.

"Hm? Oh yeah!" Da Vinci said as she inputted the coordinates into the computer to allow the group to rayshift to the singularity. "All right! It's done."

The group of four then stood on the alter to be rayshifted. As they rayshifted, they arrived at the singularity they were in.

One small problem though...was that they were in the air.

"Oh no, not again!" Ritsuka and Mashu thought as they along with Shirou and Mordred were falling into the ground. As they were falling, Mashu held on to Ritsuka's hand and grabbed onto to him while Shirou did the same for Mordred.

They eventually landed onto the ground of a forest.

"Ow...Mashu, are you alright?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah...what about you senpai?" Mashu replied.

"I guess so...what about Shirou and Mordred?"

"I don't know. Let's go check on them," Ritsuka said.

Ritsuka and Mashu checked the area around to see where Shirou and Mordred are. As they found them and got closer to the site, they saw Mordred on top of Shirou.

"Ouch...are you okay Mordred?" Shirou asked.

"Uh...yeah...I guess," Mordred replied as she quickly got off from Shirou. Shirou then got off from the ground and dusted himself off.

"Okay, where to go master?" Shirou asked.

"For now, let's just get out of this forest then," Ritsuka replied.

"Good idea senpai," Mashu replied.

The group of four then went through a few trees to find to get out of the forest they were in. As they were walking through the forest, Mordred was embarrassed from the fall earlier.

"I can't believe I landed on mother! And on my first mission with him nether less!" she thought as they were walking.

Shirou noticed Mordred's behavior and asked, "Are you okay Mordred?"

Mordred quickly changed her mood and huffed, "Huh? What are you talking about? I should be the one asking you that question mother! I mean, you landed on your back without any protection after all!"

Shirou quickly calmed her down, "Calm down Mordred, I'm just worried about you."

Mordred pouted. "You don't have to tell me that..."

Ritsuka and Mashu looked at the scene in interest. "Ah...Shirou may be on his toughest battle yet...caring for Arturia's child..."

It was at that moment, Shirou suddenly tensed up.

"Shirou?" Ritsuka asked.

"Mater, it seems we have some company," Shirou said.

Ritsuka, Mashu, and Mordred then sensed the presence of other people in the forest. As so, a bunch of bandits in suits suddenly showed up with weapons.

"Senpai, stay behind me," Mashu said.

"Got it. Shirou, Mordred, take care of the enemies."

Mordred grinned. "You don't have to tell me that!" she exclaimed as she charged in with Clarent in her hands, ready to strike her enemies down. Shirou then followed her.

"Mordred! Don't get too far ahead!" Shirou yelled out.

"I got it!" she replied.

As Shirou and Mordred headed into the group of bandits, the forest was stained with blood as Shirou and Mordred were killing bandits left and right with grace on Shirou's side while ferocity on Mordred's side.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Man, who knew Mordred could be that reckless in battle...definitely something that she did not inherit from Arturia," Shirou thought as he was walking towards where Ritsuka, Mashu, and Mordred were. "Okay, I'm here master."

"Okay, let's go then," Ritsuka said before they continued traveling in the forest.

However, that's when out of nowhere, a bandit shot an arrow from the shadow of the trees and was heading for Mordred's head.

Shirou noticed and yelled, "Watch out!" while pushing Mordred away.

As a result, he got shot in the hand, but only lightly.

"Shirou/Shirou-san!" Ritsuka and Mashu yelled.

"Mother!" Mordred yelled out in fear.

"Tch!" the bandit said as he missed his target before propping another arrow.

However, Shirou noticed a shine in the trees and quickly materialized a black bow and a black sword in his hands.

As he readied his bow, he chanted, "Go into the red plains..."

Then he released the twisted sword.

"Hrunting!"

He shot the twisted sword into the area where the bandit with the bow was hiding, instantly killing him. Shirou sighed as the threat was dealt with.

"Shirou-san! Are you all right?!" Mashu asked in worry.

"I'm fine. It's just a scratch," Shirou replied.

"Aren't you injured though?"

"This is nothing. Trust me, comparing the situations I went through, an injury like this is nothing."

Ritsuka, Mashu, and Mordred were shocked at what Shirou just said. "Just what kind of situations did Shirou/Shirou-san/mother went through?" they thought in unison.

"Are all of you all right?" Shirou asked, snapping them out of their shock.

"Huh? Oh! Uh...yeah," Ritsuka said.

"Y-Yes!" Mashu said.

"Y-Yeah..." Mordred muttered.

"Well then...shall we move on?"

And thus, the group of four continued to their destination.

_(A few hours later...)_

"Okay, I think that should be it," Shirou said as he carried a dead boar to the campsite. He then placed the boar over the campfire.

Right now, Shirou, Mordred, Ritsuka, and Mashu were taking a break from walking the forest because night has fallen upon them. As they were camping, Shirou noticed that Mordred was acting a bit shy when it comes to himself.

Despite Mordred telling Shirou that she was fine, he can see through her.

"How long until the boar is cooked mother?" Mordred asked.

"Just a few more minutes Mordred."

"Okay. I'll be leaving temporarily to get some more firewood. I'll be back."

Shirou then left the campfire to grab some wood for kindle. As he was grabbing some wood, he sensed that Mordred was following him everywhere.

"Okay. Mordred's acting really weird today and I don't know why," Shirou thought.

Shirou then grabbed the firewood that he needed and headed back towards the campfire. As he arrived at the campfire, he noticed that Ritsuka and Mashu were gone. "Huh. Guess master and Mashu must have gone to find more food. But...this does give me an opportunity."

He then said, "Mordred, you can come out now. I know that you've been following me for quite a while."

There was no response.

"Mordred..."

Then there was a small grumble and she appeared out from behind a tree. "Damn, how did you know that I was there?" she asked.

"I was sensing you when I was gathering firewood. No offense, but your presence was sticking you out," Shirou replied.

"Tch..."

Mordred then sat next to where Shirou was but facing the opposite direction to avoid facial contact with him.

"Is there something you want to talk about?"

Mordred stayed silent, prompting Shirou to change the subject.

"So...have you been getting along with Arturia and her alternate versions?" Shirou asked.

Mordred immediately answered that question. "Well...for the most part...yeah..." she muttered.

"Any fights with her?"

"Not quite. Maybe an argument once and then."

"I see...have you been avoiding her?"

"Well...no," she muttered.

The silence resumed.

"Mordred, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Why are you acting so weird around me?"

Mordred sighed. "Weird? What are you talking about?" she asked as she tried to feign ignorance while trying to laugh but failed to convince Shirou.

It was at that point Mordred couldn't hide her problems anymore.

"Well...guess I can't hide it anymore."

Mordred turned around.

"The truth why I've been acting weird around you mother...is that you're the first person that cared for me like how a normal parent would...and I don't know how to feel about that."

Shirou was confused. "What do you mean by that?"

Mordred let out a sigh. "You know what my lore is right?"

"Yes, and I would rather not say anything about it."

Mordred chuckled. "Guess both of us agreed on that part. But...yeah, I had a shitty excuse of a parent. My birth mother didn't care about me, used me as a tool, and turned me into an assassin in early parts of my life, making me strike in the shadows. Afterwards, I went to Camelot under my birth mother's orders, joining the Knights of the Round. Afterwards, my birth mother told me about my father, and that's well...things went into hell."

"You mean the rebellion?"

"Yeah. After learning about my heritage, I went up to father and asked for the throne. Of course, she rejected it and it made me hate her because she didn't think of me as her son. Resulting from that, distrust between the knights grew and I used that as an opportunity to start a rebellion in Camelot while father was away."

"And it ended in a death battle between the two of you."

"Yes."

Silence returned between the two. Shirou then noticed that the boar was cooked, and he hacked a slice off. He then gave the piece to Mordred.

"Want some?" he asked.

"Yeah," Mordred replied as she ate the piece immediately.

"So...do you still hate your father?" Shirou asked while taking a piece for himself.

"Well...it's not that I hate father...I just don't get along with her along with her alternate versions," Mordred replied as she hacked off another piece for herself as well.

"I see..."

"Yeah. If anything, things were awkward when father or any of her alternate versions and I would meet each other in Chaldea. However, after you came along, father changed and honestly...I like it. Now these days, I would see father or any of her alternate versions with a genuine smile," Mordred said with a smile.

Shirou then hacked off another piece of the boar. "Want some more?"

Mordred grabbed it and said, "I can handle this on my own you know? If anything, aren't you hungry?"

"Nah, I'm not that hungry. Not only that but considering that you ate nearly a quarter of the boar, it proves that you truly are Arturia's child."

"How so?"

"If there was one thing about your father that I know of, it's that she's got a huge appetite. And the same applies to her other versions as well."

"Really? How huge would it be?"

"I would say...enough to eat me out of my own house if I were still alive," Shirou jokingly said.

Mordred laughed at Shirou's statement. "Wow. Now that's something I would like to see!"

"You probably wouldn't."

Mordred continued laughing at Shirou's statement until she calmed down.

"You know, it's quite mysterious," Mordred suddenly said.

"What is?" Shirou asked.

"The fact is that not only my father is here, but apparently, she has a lover, which is you who happened to be not only my father's former master, but also the bearer to my father's scabbard, and that technically makes you our queen and my mother. What's more, unlike my birth mother, you actually treat me with care like how any normal parent would do to their child. In fact, we're practically having a conversation like how a parent and child would."

"Really? You don't like it?"

"It's not that...it's just that I not used to getting this much attention...and honestly...the feeling is...quite nice."

Shirou smiled. "Well I'm glad that you like it Mordred."

Mordred quickly blushed in embarrassment. "D-Don't mention any of this in front of father."

"Deal. By the way, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Can you please at least spend some time rekindling with Arturia please? I know it may be awkward for you, but can you at least try when I'm not around?"

"Well...I'll try...only for you mother," Mordred replied.

It was then that Ritsuka and Mashu came back.

"Ah master, it seems like you came back with more wood."

"Yeah, along with some great news. Mashu found the bandits' base!" Ritsuka exclaimed with excitement.

"Great! Now I can bring some payback to the bandits that injured mother!" Mordred exclaimed excitedly.

Ritsuka and Mashu were confused with Mordrd's exclamation.

"Uh...who is this "mother" you're talking about?" Mashu asked.

Mordred then pointed to Shirou. "Him."

Both Mashu and Ritsuka were surprised at what Mordred just said. "EHHHHHHHHH?!" they exclaimed while Shirou sighed.

_(A few days later...)_

After completing the side mission, Shirou, Mordred, Ritsuka, and Mashu were rayshifted back to Chaldea. As soon as they returned, they were greeted with Da Vinci and surprisingly, Arturia.

"Welcome back! How did the mission go!" Da Vinci asked.

"It went well," Ritsuka replied.

"Any problems?"

"Nope. None at all," Mashu replied.

"Great! Now, I'll be leaving along with you Ritsuka and Mashu," Da Vinci said.

"Wait. What about Shirou and Mordred?" Ritsuka asked.

"Arturia needs to have a talk with them, so they'll be staying behind. Now come on!" Da Vinci exclaimed as she dragged Ritsuka and Mashu out of the room.

At that moment, the only people in that room were Shirou, Arturia, and Mordred.

"Hey there...father," Mordred muttered.

"So...how do you feel Mordred?"

Mordred then gave out a smile. "Honestly...I feel really good with mother right now."

Arturia smiled back. "So, I take it that..."

"Yes. He's way better than Morgan. It's no wonder why you and your alternate versions fell in love with him. He's not only a good cook, but he's also a good person with morals and a good heart as well."

"I know Mordred. I know..."

That's when a growling sound came from both Arturia and Mordred's stomachs, making them blush of embarrassment.

Shirou chuckled. "Want to head to the cafeteria then?"

"Yes please," Arturia and Mordred said in unison.

"Let's go then."

Shirou then left the room followed up by Arturia and Mordred. As they were walking towards the cafeteria, Mordred looked behind Shirou and Arturia with a smile on her face.

_"Is this what a family feels like? If so...then it isn't that bad...I could get used to this..."_

And to this day, Mordred felt like a new world was opened for her.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

"Onii-chan! Where are you!" Illya yelled out.

"Where did onii-chan go?" Kuro muttered.

"He can't be far..." Sitonai said.

"I hope so..." Miyu replied.

As the four girls were searching for Shirou, they eventually bumped into Mordred, who was happened to be passing by. "Excuse me, have you seen our onii-chan?" Illya asked.

"Your onii-chan? What does he look like?" Mordred asked.

"Red hair, golden-brown eyes, wears a white kimono, a red sash, armored pants, armored boots, and carries a katana around," Kuro said.

In a moment, Mordred knew the person they were talking about.

_"These four girls are mother's little sisters? Wait...does that mean..."_

"Well, have you seen him?" Miyu asked.

Mordred was silent.

"Well?" Sitonai asked.

Mordred took a deep breath before telling them something. "Well...here's something that I have to tell you..."

Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu stared at her, making her break the news immediately.

"If you're onii-chan happened to be Shirou...then that technically means you four are my aunts since Shirou is my mother."

Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu were in shock at what Mordred just said.

"A-A-A-A-A-A-A-AAAAAAAAAAAUNT?!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Yeah," Mordred stated.

Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu did not take it well, especially the "Shirou is my mother" part of the statement.

"T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-That's impossible! Onii-chan can't be a parent already!" Illya exclaimed.

"That's right! It's impossible at this timing!" Kuro said.

"Also. I'm pretty sure that heroic spirits can't get pregnant," Sitonai said.

"Yeah. It's technically impossible for onii-chan to get married and have a child this soon. Not only that, but we would have received a notice about the wedding if there is one!" Miyu stated.

Mordred gave off a small chuckle at the mess she just made...and it was about to get bigger.

Suddenly, Irisviel came out of nowhere.

"Oh my. What seems to be the ruckus here?" Irisviel asked.

"Mama! Listen to this, this girl claims to be our niece and apparently Shirou's daughter!" Ilya exclaimed.

"Yeah! It's technically impossible!" Kuro said.

"She's right! And I'm pretty sure that Shirou isn't married," Sitonai said.

"And heroic spirits can't get pregnant," Miyu said.

Iriviel then took a long look at Mordred while inspecting her at the same time.

"W-What?" Mordred.

"Hm...are you certain that Shirou is your mother?"

"Well...y-yeah."

"Then let me be the judge of that. Shirou!"

Then Shirou came out of nowhere. "What is it mom?"

"Is this girl really your daughter?"

"Well...yes...according to Arturia and her alternate versions. Her name is Mordred, one of the knights of the round. Be nice to her okay? Also, she prefers to be called son."

Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu were shocked about this.

"And who's the mother?"

"Arturia Pendragon. Also, she prefers to call me mother and Arturia father, so don't get them confused."

"I see. Well, thanks Shirou."

"No problem. Also, Mordred," Shirou said, turning his attention to Mordred.

"Yes mother?"

"We're having curry tonight. You want some?"

"Yes!" Mordred exclaimed, knowing that she was about to eat Shirou's food.

"Great. See you at dinner then," Shirou said with a smile.

Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu were dumbfounded at the conversation Shirou had with Mordred.

Mordred, however, looked smug.

"See. Told you," she said with a grin. Then suddenly, Irisviel gave her a giant hug. "What the-"

"Finally! I have a grandchild!" Irisviel exclaimed happily. "Call me grandmother if you want to Mordred! And if you see Kiritsugu, call him grandfather if you want to as well!"

And that is how Mordred met her extended family, the Emiya/Einzbern family.


	13. An Emperor's Evaluation

_Saber-face._

_A term for characters that carry the same face as Arturia Pendragon, the king of knights._

_For example, Arturia Alter, Arturia Lily, Lancer Arturia, Lancer Arturia Alter, Ruler Arturia, Archer Arturia, Rider Arturia Alter, Santa Arturia Alter, Mysterious Heroine X, Mysterious Heroine X Alter, Mysterious XX, Mordred Pendragon, Summer Mordred, Saber Nero, Caster Nero, Bride Nero, Jeanne D'Arc, Archer Jeanne D'Arc, Jeanne D'Arc Alter, Berserker Jeanne D'Arc Alter, Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily, Okita Souji, Summer Okita Souji, Okita Souji Alter, and Lakshmibal carry the same face as Arturia Pendragon._

_No one knows why or how many historical figures carries the same face..._

_It's a wonder that no one is confused with them, considering how there are so many servants with nearly the same face, let alone being alternate versions or something else..._

_And it's another wonder how they haven't got into a fight with each other over knowing which one is which._

_Normally, the Arturias, Neros, Mordred, Jeanne D'Arcs, and the Okitas get along with each other...for the most part._

_However, all of that will change..._

_When a certain roman emperor got word of a certain red-haired hero and his skills..._

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was in the cafeteria, minding his own business as he was cleaning up the dishes from the daily lunch with the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illya, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, and Kiritsugu.

However, his usual routine at the cafeteria was interrupted...by a certain saber-face servant.

"Excuse me but are you the heroic spirit known as Emiya Shirou?" a voice said.

Shirou turned around to see who the voice came from...and was surprised as soon as he looked at her.

The person he was looking at looked like Arturia, but was different. The person was wearing a red battle dress like Arturia's blue battle dress but had a few differences. One which was that the dress didn't cover the back and focused on her breasts, giving them attention. Her eyes were green like Arturia's, but in a lighter tone.

However, that wasn't even the thing that caught him off guard.

Because the bottom of the dress was transparent, making it very easy to see her panties.

"Um...Arturia?" Shirou asked after having a temporary mind shutdown.

"Arturia? Ah, I'm sorry, but I'm not her despite us looking like each other," the person replied.

"Really? Then who are you?"

The person let out a grin. "Umu! My name is Nero Claudius Ceasar Augustus Germanicus!"

Shirou couldn't believe what Nero said. "Nero?! You mean that Nero?! The fifth emperor of Rome?!"

Nero let out a huge smile. "Umu! It's glad that you know of me Emiya Shirou!"

Shirou stared at her in disbelief. "No way! That's Nero Claudius Ceasar Augustus Germanicus?! But why does she look like Arturia?! Are they related?! Nah, it can't be. But still though...why does she look like Arturia?! It doesn't make any sense! I do get the other versions of Arturia though considering that they are her, but this? This is making my mind crazy," he thought.

"Is there something wrong?" Nero asked, snapping him out of his daze.

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing," Shirou replied. After a few seconds, Shirou took a deep breath and asked, "So...why have you come for me Nero?"

"Umu! I came here after hearing of your skills!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Shirou was confused. "Skills?"

_(A few hours ago...)_

Nero was walking down in Chaldea's hallways, minding her own business with a smile on her face. As she was walking, she kept hearing rumors and talks about a certain someone.

And that certain someone happened to be Emiya Shirou.

"Did you see what the new saber-class servant just did earlier?" One servant asked.

"Yeah! Apparently, he can trace multiple weapons out of nowhere!" Another servant replied.

"Really?!"

"Yeah. I saw him practicing it earlier."

"A saber class summoning multiple weapons...doesn't that make him a double class servant of saber and caster?"

"A double class servant?! Is that even possible?!"

"Could be. After all, we have archers that don't even use a bow and just throws whatever weapon they hold."

Nero was intrigued by what the servants just said. "A saber class servant that can summon weapons out of thin air? Now that sounds interesting..." She then continued to walk forward, eventually landing in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms. As she sat down, the talk about Emiya Shirou continued as a few servants entered the room.

"Man. Never knew that I needed Senpai's help with that problem," Parvati said.

"No kidding. Senpai is always helpful with his skills around," BB replied with a smile. "Heck, I wouldn't even be surprised that if he managed to fix all Chaldea's problems later in the future."

"Really? Would he do that?" Passionlip asked.

"He could. Even without anyone asking," Meltlilith replied.

"That's something senpai would do," Kingprotea said.

"You may be right about that," Kama said.

"Still though...who would have known that he would be summoned here as a saber-class servant?" Pavati said.

As the group of Sakuras continued their chat about Shirou, Nero got more interested into the topic. "So, those group of girls know who the new saber-class servant is. And judging by their reactions and praise to him, he must be very exceptional in his skills..." Nero thought.

However, the praising didn't end.

Because the Rins came into the room.

"Man, Emiya-kun always seems to surprise us," Ishtar said.

"No kidding. Who would have expected him to come here as a saber-class servant?" Ereshikigal said.

"I know right? That's practically the best class out of all of them, and Emiya-kun out of luck became one. However, even when becoming a heroic spirit, he's still the gullible, reckless, and selfless Emiya-kun we all know of," Rider Ishtar said with a smile.

Nero heard this and thought, "These girls know the saber-class servant too? And his name is Emiya? Is that his first name or last name?"

And to add more curiosity and interest to her discovery of Emiya Shirou, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu came into the room.

"Isn't onii-chan amazing!" Illya exclaimed.

"Yes! To think he would be able to trace this many weapons...I'm surprised!" Kuro exclaimed.

"Yeah! And his cooking skills hasn't gone down either!" Sitonai exclaimed.

"Yes...his cooking still tastes great even after all this time..." Miyu said.

It was when that Nero's interest in Emiya Shirou exploded and in curiosity and went up to the girls, surprising them.

"Umm...do you have a question for us?" Parvati asked.

"Umu! Just who is this saber-class servant known as "Emiya" you girls are talking about!" Nero exclaimed.

There was moment of silence between Nero and the groups of girls as they instantly knew who she was talking about.

"Are you by any chance wanting to know about Emiya Shirou?" Ishtar asked.

"Is that the heroic spirit's name?" Nero asked in return.

"Y-Yes," Illya replied.

"Who are you by the way? And why do you look like Arturia?" Ereshkigal asked.

Nero let out a grin and said, "Umu! My name is Nero Ceasar Claudius! The fifth emperor of Rome!"

"Huh...and why are you interested in onii-chan all of a sudden?" Kuro asked.

"Because you guys make him so interesting! The way you talk about him gives me the impression that he could be a valuable ally! So, tell me! Who is the heroic spirit known as Emiya Shirou and where is he right now!" Nero asked.

The group of girls were wary of Nero because it sounds like Nero had something planned for Shirou.

"Um...what do you have planned for senpai?" BB asked.

"Umu! I'm just planning to have a chat with him and assess him to see if he is worthy of my attention!" Nero exclaimed happily. "Do you know where he is?"

"Well...at this time of day...he would probably be in the cafeteria preparing himself to make the food for the servants," Kingprotea said.

"I see...well then, thank you for the information!" Nero said with a smile on her face before leaving for the cafeteria.

Nero then left the room, leaving the groups of girls alone.

"Did our talk about onii-chan really interested her?" Stionai asked.

"Judging by her tone of voice, I would say yes," Rider Ishtar said.

"Oh boy, I got a bad feeling about this..." Meltlilith said.

"What do you mean by that?" Passionlip asked.

"Think about it. What will happen if Nero manages to fall in love with onii-chan?" Miyu said with a bit of fear in her tone as she realized what just happened.

The thought of Nero falling in love with Shirou was crazy and was deemed impossible. However, as they thought about it longer, the idea of Nero falling in love with Shirou could end up become real.

And it meant bad news for them.

"Get her!" Kama yelled out.

And the girls quickly left the room to stop Nero.

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's how I came upon hearing your skills!" Nero exclaimed with a smile on her face.

Shirou was stunned at the story Nero just gave him. "Are my skills that well-known in Chaldea? Enough to the point where people started gossiping about them? And why are some servants still shocked that a saber-class servant can summon weapons out of thin air? I mean come on, we seriously have archers that shoot swords out of nowhere...also, are my cooking skills that well-known as well? Also, she acts like Gilgamesh, but a lot nicer." he thought.

After a few breaths, Shirou said, "So...you came here because you heard praise about from Rin and her alternate versions, Sakura and her alternate versions, Illya and her alternate versions, Miyu and a few other servants?"

"Yes!"

"And due to them, it made you have an interest in me?"

"Umu! That is correct!"

"I see...so what are you going to evaluate me on?"

"Simple! Your skills! I take it that you don't have a problem with that?" Nero asked.

Shirou thought about Nero's request and said, "Well...since we're practically allies in Chaldea helping master restoring humanity, I don't see any problem with that...so yeah, you can evaluate me on my skills."

"Excellent! Now, tell me who you are and what do you specialize in!" Nero replied.

Shirou took a deep breath before stating his background. "My name is Emiya Shirou, the psuedo-servant vessel to Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith. I am a saber-class servant. I specialize in tracing."

"Tracing? What is that?" Nero asked.

"It is the personal variation of Gradation Air that me and Archer use. It is referred as tracing because of the unique aria, "Trace On," that is used for its activation. It is way different from normal projection because it not only reproduces the shape and substance of an object, but also its entire history as well. This include noble phantasms as well. However, the object must be seen for it to be traced."

Nero's eyes immediately lit up after hearing what tracing is. "Umu! That's sounds amazing! Can you give me a demonstration of it?"

Shirou smiled. "Sure."

Shirou then raised his arm forwards and began to say the aria.

**"Trace on."**

In that moment, Nero's sword, Asestus Estus, appeared in his hand.

"Umu! That's my sword!" Nero exclaimed as she saw her sword in Shirou's hand. "How are you able to trace it when I haven't even brought it out yet?!"

"The thing is that the object doesn't have to be physically brought out. It can also be traced by seeing through the original user's memories as well," Shirou replied.

"That's amazing! And you can do this on any weapon you see!?" Nero exclaimed in excitement.

"Not quite. I can't trace a divine construct."

"I see...well, you seem to have quite the skill Emiya Shirou. To think that you would turn Gradation Air into something fearsome...I like it! Do you have any other skills?"

"Well...I do have knowledge in cooking..." Shirou muttered.

"Ah yes! I've heard about that as well! Some of the servants here said that you are well known in cooking! I wish to sample some of it!"

Shirou smiled. "All right. Just let me check the fridge for some ingredients and I cook up something." As Shirou headed towards the fridge, he thought, "What would be a dish to please a roman emperor?"

After a few minutes of thinking, Shirou had his answer.

"Lucanian sausages. That's one way to please an emperor...I hope." Shirou thought as he remembered it from one of his travels when he was alive. He then went into the fridge and grabbed a pound of pork belly, sausage skins, and fish sauce. He then also grabbed some pine kernels, black peppercorns, fresh rue, dried savory, ground cumin, black pepper, and fresh parsley from the counter.

As he gathered the ingredients and spices, he then combined all of them and mixed them well using a food processor. Afterwards, he filled the mixture into a tube in a piping bag and started squeezing the mixture until the skin ran out. As he used up all the meat, he then twisted each length of sausage into four even or similar segments. He then proceeded to cut them into individual sausages and grilled them over a medium heat.

After minutes of grilling, the sausages were done.

"Here you go Nero, one plate of Lucanian sausages," Shirou said as he handed her the plate of Lucanian sausages.

Nero looked at the sausages and was in marvel at how beautiful it looked. "Lucanian sausages? It's been a while since I had these. How did Shirou know that I like them? Did he know when he was tracing my weapon earlier? Nero then dismissed her thoughts as she took a bite.

At that moment, Nero knew the pinnacle of taste from eating the sausage. When she took the bite, she felt multiple flavors and tastes going through her mouth. As she took another bite, more flavors came through her mouth and she started to give off a pink and yellow aura and roses were floating around her.

She then finished the sausages and was immediately satisfied with the results and her evaluation of Shirou.

She smiled as she then looked at him.

"W-What?" Shirou asked.

"Umu! I like you Emiya Shirou! You have met, or rather surpassed Nero's evaluation of you with your skills in both battle and cooking! You shall be known as my praetor!" Nero exclaimed excitedly.

Shirou looked at her nervously, not knowing what to say. "W-What do I say to her in this situation?

It was then that Nero's alternate versions came in.

"Hey me. What is going on here?" Caster Nero asked.

"Are you up to something interesting again, saber me?" Bride Nero asked.

"Umu! Caster version of me, bride version of me, meet Emiya Shirou! He is our new praetor considering how he has surpassed my evaluation of him with his skill in magecraft and cooking!" Nero replied in an excited tone.

Hearing saber Nero's words, both Caster Nero and Bride looked Shirou a bit closely as they examined every nook of himself.

After a few minutes of looking, both Caster Nero and Bride Nero made their evaluations.

"Umu! You seem reliable!" Caster Nero said with a smile.

"Umu! To make the saber version of us give so much praise about you makes you worthy to be our praetor too!" Bride Nero said in an excited tone.

"I know right! Considering what he has shown me in recreating my weapon and making such good Lucanian sausages, he deserves to be called Praetor by us!" Nero said.

Shirou looked at Nero, Caster Nero, and Bride Nero and thought, "Oh boy, this can't be good. Being claimed by Nero and her alternate selves as their praetor? That's something Arturia is not going to like. Speaking of which, is this what she felt when Gilgamesh kept telling her that she is his wife? Well...at least Nero isn't an asshole unlike him."

It was then that Shirou's E-rank luck decides to kick in...

In the form of an angry aura from the Arturias as they noticed the bloodlust from the aura.

"Nero..." they muttered angrily.

The Neros turned around and said, "Ah Arturia! And your alternate versions! What seems to be the problem?" not knowing the situation they were in.

"It's one thing for other servants to mistake us for each other, but to take Shirou away from us? Let go of Shirou this instant..." Arturia muttered.

"And why?"

The Arturias took a deep breath before yelling in unison, "BECAUSE HE'S OUR QUEEN AND OUR SCABBARD!"

The Neros were surprised by this but didn't let this damp their moods. "Umu! So, you claim him as your queen and your scabbard? Well I can see why but we already claimed him as our praetor!" they exclaimed.

Shirou then left the countertop and tried to calm the two groups down from the tension they were creating. "All right, let's just talk this out and-"

However, that's when things got ugly between the two.

Because as soon as he got close between the groups, Nero then gave him a kiss on the cheek.

And the Arturias were not happy.

"NERO!" They exclaimed as they immediately attacked Nero, causing a full-blown scale war between the Arturias and the Neros in the cafeteria, each side unleashing their weapons at each other. Shirou sighed as he remained on the sidelines, still shocked over what just happened.

_"Why?"_

Meanwhile outside of the cafeteria, the Rins, Sakuras, Illyas and Miyu watched the spectacle, and they all had one thought in mind.

_"Okay, we found her...but it feels like we shouldn't get involved in this fight..."_

It was that day Emiya Shirou earned a new title.

"Praetor" by the Neros.


	14. Fixing Family Relationships

"Queen Shirou!" a voice called out.

"Hm?"

Shirou then turned around to see Lancelot, Knight of the Lake and one of the Knights of the Round, running towards him.

_"Lancelot? What does he want?"_

Lancelot then quickly placed his hands on Shirou's shoulders and said, "Oh thank god I found you!" while gasping for breath.

"Easy there. Take a deep breath before saying what you want to say next," Shirou said.

Lancelot followed Shirou's advice and took a deep breath. "Okay, I feel much better," he said.

"Good. Now, what seems to be the problem Lancelot?"

"My queen...I think Mashu is mad at me."

Shirou was confused. "Mashu?"

"Yes."

"How come?"

"Well..." Lancelot said as he thought back to what happened a few hours ago...

_(A few hours ago...)_

Lancelot was walking down Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business. As he was walking, he overheard Ritsuka and Mashu in the cafeteria taking about something.

"Hey Senpai?" Mashu asked.

"Hm? What is it Mashu?" Ritsuka replied.

"Do you have any family of such?"

"Yeah. I do have a mother and father back at home."

"Any siblings?"

"No. I'm an only child."

"I see..." Mashu muttered.

Ritsuka noticed Mashu's tone of voice and asked, "What seems to be the problem?"

"Well...it's just that I'm a little jealous of you senpai."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well...you have a normal family that loves you dearly and before you became a master of Chaldea, you were living a normal life, unaware of the moonlit world. You only had to worry about school, homework, just daily stuff from a normal life itself. Me? I'm a designer baby. I don't have any birth parents."

Ritsuka looked at Mashu with a face of comfort and said, "Don't worry. Even if you may be a designer baby and don't have any birth parents, you still got a family here. Me, Da Vinci, Fou, and everyone else here."

"You think so senpai?"

"Yeah," Ritsuka said with a smile on his face.

Mashu blushed and said, "T-Thanks."

"No problem."

As Ritsuka and Mashu continued their conversation, Lancelot was listening to the conversation in a corner of the hallway hidden. "Mashu...you had these feelings inside of you this whole time? You wished you had real parents?"

As time passed by, the conversation reached to a certain point where things got a little hairy.

All because of a certain question.

"Hey Mashu, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it senpai?"

"What do you think of Emiya Shirou?"

"Eh? Shirou-san?"

"Yes."

"Well...he's a nice person. I mean, the way he cares about other people and the servants, he acts like a mother to them."

"Really?"

"Yeah. In fact, one time, he brought over some bread during lunch and you want to know what I said?"

"What?"

"I called him mom by accident," Mashu said with a blush.

Ritsuka laughed at what Mashu just said. "Really?"

"Y-Yeah. Sorry, but I just thought what Shirou-san just did felt like how it feels to have a mom."

"Maybe you just want to call Shirou mommy for once?" Ritsuka jokingly asked.

"D-Don't make jokes like that!" Mashu yelled with a blush.

Eventually, the conversation ended and Ritsuka and Mashu left the cafeteria. As they left the cafeteria, Ritsuka noticed Lancelot was standing nearby.

"Ah Lancelot! What are you doing here?" Ritsuka asked.

"Well...can I talk to Mashu for a moment?" Lancelot asked.

"Sure."

Lancelot then turned to Mashu and said, "Uh Mashu, do you have a moment?"

"What?" Mashu asked.

"Um...that kind of people...might be not too bad..." Lancelot muttered with a blush on his face.

"What are taking about?" Mashu asked.

"You see...um...for your new mother...someone like Queen Shirou is a good choice, isn't it?"

That's when Mashu snapped, went into her demi-servant form, and dropped her giant shield onto Lancelot, surprising Ritsuka.

"Mashu! What are you-?!"

"Senpai! Let's just burn this guy to mana prism now!" Mashu yelled angrily.

"Eh?!"

"You heard me! Let's burn him to mana prism now!" Mashu yelled again.

"You misunderstood me! I don't know what you were getting at, but it must be a misunderstanding!" Lancelot yelled while he was getting crushed by Mashu's giant shield.

"Shut up!"

"Master! Please help me!"

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's what happened," Lancelot said as he recalled the events from earlier.

Shirou was dumbfounded by the turn of events Lancelot told him. "So, what you are telling me is that Mashu nearly squished you with her shield because you said something that she misunderstood as something unethical?"

"Yes."

"I see..."

It was at that point that Shirou was really confused with Mash's actions. "Okay, why would Mashu do that to Lancelot? Why would she be mad at him for something misunderstood? And why would she want to burn him for mana prism?" he thought.

"Queen Shirou?" Lancelot asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm?"

"What should I do?"

Shirou sighed. "For now, I should probably check on Mashu to see what's bothering her from the conversation you two had earlier. Is that okay with you?"

"Y-Yes!" Lancelot said.

"Great. I'll be off to find Mashu then," Shirou said before he left Lancelot to find Mashu.

After a few minutes, Shirou found Mashu in the cafeteria.

"Mashu."

Mashu nearly jumped from hearing the voice. "S-Shirou san!?"

"Mashu, do you mind for a moment of your time?"

"N-No!"

Shirou then sat down next to Mashu.

"W-What do you want to talk about Shirou-san?"

"Well...it's about what you did to Lancelot earlier..."

Mashu let out a sigh after knowing what he was talking about. "Let me guess, Lancelot told you about that and that's why you're talking about that?

"Yes."

Mashu let out another sigh. "Well...Shirou-san, do you know of my origins?"

"No. Why?"

"Well...let's just say I'm not normal."

"What do you mean by that?"

Mashu let out one more sigh. "I'm a designer baby. Designed by the orders of the deceased Marisbury Animusphere in order to house a heroic spirit. At age 10, I was conducted into an experiment of housing a heroic spirit. The experiment well...was sort of a success...at the cost of limiting my lifespan to 18 years."

Shirou was surprised at Mashu's backstory before he asked a question upon realizing what Mashu said last. "Wait, if your lifespan is limited to 18 years...then how come you're still alive?"

"After the 7th singularity, I was granted a normal life thanks to fou-san. He granted me centuries of his prana into my life-force, giving me a normal life-force."

"I see...just one thing. Who was the heroic spirit that bonded with you?"

Mashu took a deep breath before saying, "Galahad."

"Galahad? Isn't he-"

"Yes. He's Lancelot's son, which technically makes him...well...my father...I guess."

"I see. So, you're a demi-servant like me, but why did you lash at him earlier? What it because of something that he said?"

"Yes. Do you have any idea what he said?"

"What?"

Mashu then repeated the last lime from the conversation before it turned into a fight. "You see...um...for your new mother...someone like Queen Shirou is a good choice, isn't it?"

Shirou was confused. "Uh...just how did that line make you so mad at him?"

"Well...it's because of my impression of him that made what he said sounds like something bad," Mashu muttered.

"What do you mean by that?"

Mashu sighed. "I'm starting to think that my father is a womanizer."

Shirou was shocked. "What?"

"Yeah. I'm starting to think that my father is a womanizer. Galahad thinks so too."

"No way. Lancelot can't be a womanizer."

"You think? Shirou-san, before you came here, there were times I saw Lancelot chatting with other women in Chaldea. At first, I thought it was a one-time thing, but as time went on, he kept doing the same thing over and over on several occasions. I know that he's not doing it on purpose, but at this point I can't tell."

Shirou was speechless at what Mashu just said. "You got to be kidding me..."

"I wish. In fact, Galahad has a nickname for him."

"And what would that be?"

Mashu sighed. "Sir Lance-marries-a-lot-of-women."

Shirou was nearly about to do a facepalm, but held it in. "Really? Galahad thought of that?"

"Yeah."

"Jeez, that's a bit too harsh on him, don't you think?"

"You can say that. Anyways, because of what he said combined with his interactions with other women in Chaldea, that's why I bashed my, or rather Galahad's shield, onto him and convincing senpai to burn him for mana prism," Mashu said embarrassingly.

"I see...so you have issues with your father then?"

"You can say that...I guess..." Mashu muttered.

Silence came between the two as they tried to figure what to say without upsetting the other. Eventually, Shirou broke the silence.

"So...do you hate him or something?" Shirou asked Mashu.

"Huh?! Oh no! It's not that I hate him or anything...it's just that's he's really embarrassing sometimes, especially when it comes to chatting with women," Mashu replied.

"I see..."

"Yeah. However, Galahad seems to hate him dearly."

"Really? How much?"

"To a passion."

"Because of what he did in the past?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah..."

Silence returned between the two. For a while, no one seemed to talk because each of them was trying to think of something to start a conversation but failed in their thoughts.

Eventually, Shirou broke the ice again.

"Hey Mashu?"

"What?"

"I know this sounds may a bit awkward to both you and Galahad...but can you forgive him?"

"Forgive Lancelot?"

"Yeah. I mean, he hasn't done anything bad to anyone here. He's a nice person, he's just going through some situations that can be misunderstood here. He's not a bad person, just misunderstood by other people. Okay?"

Mashu thought about it and said, "Well Galahad isn't going to try...but I could try. Is that okay with you?"

Shirou smiled. "It's all that I can ask for."

Mashu smiled back. "Okay."

"Good. First, we need to find Lancelot," Shirou said as he got out of his seat.

Shirou and Mashu then left the cafeteria to find where Lancelot was in. Eventually, they found him in walking down in the hallway.

"Lancelot!"

Lancelot immediately recognized that voice and turned around saying, "Queen Shirou? Mashu?"

"Mashu. Will you do the honors?"

Mashu hesitantly nodded and went up to Lancelot. "Um...Lancelot...about what happened earlier...I'm sorry for smashing you with my shield...and trying to convince senpai to burn you into mana prism..." she muttered.

"It's okay Mashu. It was my fault to begin with. I didn't realize the words I said influenced you greatly, especially-"

"On Galahad. Yeah, I know."

There was silence between the two while Shirou waited a word from each of them.

"Hey...uh, Mashu?"

"What is it Lancelot?"

"Um...if you don't mind...do you want to do a quest together?" Mashu embarrassingly asked.

Lancelot smiled and said, "Yes. I would love that."

Mashu smiled back. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go then."

"Hold on a second. I need to thank Queen Shirou for this. You can go on ahead."

"Okay!" Mashu said before she left, leaving Shirou and Lancelot behind.

"Queen Shirou, I...I don't know how to thank you," Lancelot said.

"Hey, don't thank me. I'm just doing what I think is right," Shirou replied with a smile.

"Queen Shirou..."

"However, Lancelot, in order to regain your daughter's trust, you must do one thing."

Lancelot listened quickly. "What is it Queen Shirou?"

"I think you need to lay off talking to women for a while, or else Mashu will continue to think that you're a womanizer."

Lancelot was shocked at Shirou's statement. "I am not a womanizer! I'm nothing like Merlin!"

Somewhere in Chaldea, Merlin sneezed. "Am I getting a cold? Or was somebody talking ill about me?" he thought.

_(The next day...)_

"Morning senpai!" Mashu exclaimed happily.

"Ah. Morning Mashu," Ritsuka replied. As Ritsuka and Mashu were walking together in the hallway, Ritsuka noticed that Mashu looked extremely happy today. More than usual as well. "Uh Mashu?"

"What is it senpai?"

"You seem quite happy today. Did something happen yesterday?"

"Well...let's just say...Shirou-san helped me with family issues..." Mashu said with a blush.

Ritsuka smiled, now knowing that she can get along with Lancelot now.


	15. The Holy Grail Talk Show

_(In a room that has been turned into a studio...)_

"Come on Da Vinci! I want this whole thing set up in five minutes!"

"On it..." Da Vinci muttered. "Who would have known that she would be such a slave driver..." she thought as she moved a booth to a corner of the studio. "Okay, the cameras and seats are all set."

"Good. And the guests?" the person asked.

"They should be arriving right now...well some of them at least," Da Vinci replied.

The voice sighed. "Let me get the others..."

And soon the person left the room, leaving Da Vinci all alone finishing up the room...

_(A few minutes later...)_

"Uh Shirou...where are we?" Arturia asked.

"I don't know Arturia," Shirou replied as he and Arturia looked at the dark room they were in. They sighed as how that earlier, they were just walking down a hallway, and now ended up here. As they were navigating through the room, they bumped into something.

Or rather, someone.

"Ow!"

"Sorry!"

"E-Emiya-kun?!" Ishtar yelled out with a blush.

"Toh-oh wait, Ishtar-san?! What are you doing here?"

"That's what I want to know as well! Just where are we!?"

"Will you two keep it down over there?" an annoyed voice said.

"That voice...Archer?" Arturia asked.

"Yeah..." Archer/EMIYA muttered. "Just how did my luck end up here? All I know is that out of nowhere, I'm suddenly teleported here...I blame my E-rank luck for this..."

"Onii-chan?!" Another voice came out.

"Illya?! You're here as well? How?! Wait, which one?!"

"I don't know! All that I know was that I was suddenly teleported here! Was it the same for you as well? Also, it's Sitonai!" Illya asked.

"Yeah. Me, Arturia, Ishtar, and Archer just suddenly teleported here out of nowhere."

"Who would do something like this?" Ishtar asked.

"I don't know. How about you Shirou? Archer?"

Shirou and Archer/EMIYA said nothing as they were just trying to figure out who or what brought them here.

"This type of thing...don't tell me she's behind this..." they though as the realization of who could it be just hit them in the face.

"Shirou?" Arturia asked.

"Archer?" Ishtar asked.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing," Shirou said.

"Yeah. What he said," Archer/EMIYA said as well.

"Ow...what's going on here..." a new voice muttered.

"Sakura/Parvati?!" Shirou and Ishtar exclaimed.

"Eh?! Sempai?! Ishtar-san?! What are you doing here?! Don't tell me you two got here as well!" Parvati exclaimed.

"You too?!"

"Yeah! Along with Rider!"

_"Rider...she's here too...?"_

"Shirou," a new voice said.

Shirou looked around to see where Medusa was and saw her behind Parvati.

"It's been a while, Rider."

"Yeah. It's been a while Shirou. Can you explain how you got here as well?"

Shirou sighed. "Honestly, if my suspicions were correct, then the person who brought us here would be-"

Suddenly, new voices came into the room, cutting Shirou off.

"Hey! Get off me!"

"Hmph! Someone like you deserves the ground you mutt."

"Don't call me a mutt!"

"Oh right, I should call you mongrel."

"Why you...!"

"Oh my, you look quite hilarious from down there, lancer."

"RWWWWWWWARRRRRRRRR!"

"Those voices...don't tell me..." Shirou thought and inwardly sighed as he knew those voices in the corner and one of them meant trouble for everyone considering his arrogance towards other people.

And his creepy obsession with Arturia.

"Uh Arturia, I think we may need to be quiet right now," Shirou whispered to Arturia.

"Why?" Arturia asked in a quiet voice.

"Because Gilgamesh is here. Along with the other servants from the fifth holy grail war."

"Oh."

However, their chances of staying hidden from the crowd were all shot down as Ishtar heard Gilgamesh's voice and started to trash talk him.

"Well well, if it isn't golden boy..."

Gilgamesh heard Ishtar's voice and instantly his mood went foul. "Ishtar..." he grumbled.

"Now now, can all of you settle down?" A new voice said.

At that moment, everyone stopped doing what they were doing. While half of the servants were wondering who that the voice was, the other half immediately knew.

"That voice...don't tell me..." Shirou, Arturia, Archer, Ishtar, Parvati, and Illya thought.

Soon, the lights of the room came on, revealing the room where the servants were in and who was there.

The room that the servants were in looked like a tv studio with multiple chairs on the right side of the room and a booth on the left side of the room. As everyone looked around the room, the servants immediately saw each other.

"Ah! Hey kid!" Lancer Cu said.

"Cu?"

"FAKER!" Gilgamesh yelled.

"Damn it. Not you..." Shirou and Archer muttered.

"Boy..." Medea said.

"Caster..."

"RWWWWWWWARRRRRRRRR!" Berserker Heracles roared.

"B-Berserker..." Shirou said nervously.

"Gilgamesh!" Arturia growled at Gilgamesh.

"Ah, if it isn't my dear saber. Have you decided on becoming my wife?" Gilgamesh said with a cocky tone.

"Creepy," Medea said.

"Definitely," Sasaki Kojiro said.

"Assassin?" Shirou asked as he noticed him.

"Hm? Oh hey, it's been a young while young man. How've you been? I've heard that you became a heroic spirit, and you somehow bonded with Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith."

Shirou was surprised with Assassin. "You knew Sengo Muramasa?"

"Yup. He was really famous in my era, especially since he's the one who technically brought down the Tokugawa clan," Sasaki said with a grin on his face.

"I see..."

"Yeah. So, any idea how all of us got here?"

"Well...if my suspicions are correct, I would say the person who brought all of us here would be-"

"Hi~!"

Everyone stopped bickering for a moment to see where the voice came from. It was then that the curtains of the stage moved, revealing Irisviel Von Einzbern in a talk show outfit.

"M-Mom?! What are you doing?!" Shirou and Sitonai exclaimed.

"Um...hosting a talk show," Irisviel stated calmly.

"But why?!"

"Because I'm bored! And I want to know about the holy grail war Shirou was in!"

"Is that the reason why you kidnapped everyone here?"

"I wouldn't say kidnap...just teleported some people here," Irisviel said with a giggle.

"And how did you set this up?!"

"With a little help from Da Vinci-chan."

"Mom...you scare me sometimes..." Shirou and Sitonai thought.

"Anyway! Since everyone is here, let's start the talk show where I'll be asking questions about various topics about the holy grail war Shirou was in!"

"Now hold on! Why should be a part of this stupid chat mongrel?" Gilgamesh sneered at Irisviel, ticking off Shirou, Sitonai, and Archer/EMIYA.

"Because I thought it would be fun! What? You scared of a chat? Hey everyone! The King of Heroes fears talking to other people!" Irisviel teased.

"You mongrel...how dare you make fun of me..." Gilgamesh muttered.

Irisviel ignored him and continued teasing him.

Gilgamesh was not amused and finally gave up. "Fine, I'll engage in this stupid chat...only if you would shut up..."

"Excellent! Now, I need everyone to be in a seat right now!"

Everyone was shocked and surprised at how easily Gilgamesh complied to Irisviel's commands. However, they were shocked even more at how cunning and scary Irisviel can be.

Soon, everyone was placed into a seat while Irisviel was at a booth.

"Now then, let the talk about the fifth holy grail war begin! Now onto the first question! Shirou, who was your servant in the fifth holy grail war?"

"It was Arturia Pendragon, King of Knights," Shirou said with a smile.

"Saber class? Or some other class?"

"Saber class?"

"How did you summon her?"

"Well...it's kind of a long story. You see, after getting revived from an impalement from Cu over there, I went back to my house...only to encounter Cu again. He tried to kill me again and I defended myself. Eventually, the fight went into the warehouse, which housed a summoning circle that I didn't know at the time. As so, when I was on the ground and placed my hand on the summoning circle, a bright light appeared and that's how I met Arturia."

"I see...what are your thoughts when you first saw her?"

Shirou and Arturia blushed at Irisviel's question.

"Well?" Irisviel asked.

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "The first time I saw her on that night...the image of her in the moonlight was stuck into my head. At that moment, what I saw was beautiful."

"S-Shirou..." Arturia muttered with a blush on her face as she looked down.

"One question about that. What catalyst did you use to summon her?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "Avalon, which was inside of my body at the time."

Iriviel smiled at her son's answer. "Okay, next question! And this one is for Mr. Cu here!"

"Oh. It's my turn now?" Cu asked with curiosity.

"Yes! Why did you try to kill Shirou on that day?"

Cu sighed. "It's not like I didn't have a choice. Back then, I had strict orders from my master to eliminate any witnesses of the holy grail war, so I had to eliminate him. Imagine my surprise when I saw him alive after I stabbed him with Gae Bolg in the heart."

"I see..."

"Yeah! And not only that, but l had to eliminate him again! And later on, I had to stab him again! With extra effort as well! I mean seriously, does this kid have the worst luck or what?!"

"That's funny, coming from you..." Everyone else thought.

"I see. Did you have any regrets?"

"Honestly no, because I was a servant at the time. I had to follow orders...although I did wish that I get to fight the kid again...without any interference."

"Okay then. Now Ishtar! Or rather Tohsaka Rin! Were you surprised that Shirou happened to get killed by Cu before the Holy Grail War started?"

"Call me Ishtar! And yeah, you're telling me! I was surprised that Emiya-kun happened to be there at the time!" Ishtar exclaimed. "And by the time when I found him, he was dead with a stab wound in the heart!"

"Yeah. If it wasn't for Tohsaka, I would still be dead right now, and I have to thank her for that."

Ishtar blushed. "Y-You don't have to thank me for that! You just happened to be nearby and that's it!"

Cu had a smug smile on his face after seeing that. "Is that so, eh...?" he thought as he looked at the behavior of Ishtar.

"A-Anyways, can you hurry onto the next question Irisviel?!" Ishtar yelled out with a blush on her face.

"All right, all right. Okay, the next question is for Parvati! Or rather Matou Sakura!"

"Eh?! I'm up next!?" Parvati exclaimed nervously.

"Yup! And here's the question! What were your feelings about the Fifth Holy Grail War?"

Parvati sighed. "My feelings about it...honestly, I didn't have any feelings about it. However, I wished what Rider told me was just a joke. If anything, I didn't want senpai to get himself involved in the war. Senpai's too kind for a war like this, and it would kill him instantly."

"Sakura..." Shirou muttered.

"Honestly...I was glad that senpai not only survived the war, but also emerged as the victor," Parvati said with a smile.

"I see...anyways, I have a question for Medusa. Medusa, was Sakura your master as mentioned earlier?"

"Yes. However, the problem was that Sakura didn't want to join the Holy Grail War, so she had to transfer her command seals to..." Rider replied, but stopped.

"To whom I might ask?"

Rider took a deep breath before saying, "To her lousy excuse of a brother, Matou Shinji," with pure venom in her voice.

Shirou was shocked for Rider to say that. "Rider, you don't have to say that..."

"Shirou. I don't care if you think that you and Shinji are friends, but all I can say is this. Matou Shinji was a horrible excuse of a brother. He has done unforgivable things to Sakura and I trust you, you don't want to know what he did to her," Medusa said with anger.

As Medusa said those words, Shirou thought, "That tone of voice...she must be really mad at Shinji. I know that he may have done some bad things during the Holy Grail War but considering Rider's words, just what did Shinji do to Sakura?"

"Wow! Sounds like you have a grudge against this Matou Shinji fellow, do you Medusa?" Irisviel asked.

"Yeah. For you to be this mad, he must have done something this bad to get on your side," Cu replied as well.

"You have no idea...there were times I wanted to murder him while he was asleep by choking him with my chains or stabbing him, command seal or not. It's a good thing he's not in Chaldea, otherwise I would have instantly murder him on the spot," Medusa muttered.

Everyone went quiet for a moment.

_"Jeez, and I thought Jason was horrible. To think this Matou Shinji made Medusa this mad...what he did to get on her bad side?"_

"All right...on to the next one! This one is for Arturia!"

"For me?"

"Yes, and this one may be a bit personal for you. What was your wish for the Holy Grail?"

Arturia sighed. "Well...my wish for the holy grail...was to undo my mistakes from my time as King Arthur by redoing the selection of the sword...or at least it was."

"Was? What do you mean by that?"

"Well...during the fifth Holy Grail War, Shirou taught me something. Even if I made some mistakes in my lifetime doesn't mean that I can just erase them easily. Otherwise what would be the point of all of the pain and sacrifices me and my knights made if I just wish them all away? That would be a big insult to all of the work me and the Knights of the Round did. Not only that, but Britain did prosper in the end."

This time, it was Shirou's turn to blush. "S-Saber..." he muttered.

Arturia smiled at him. "What? I just followed your advice Shirou."

"Wow. That seems like a tough wish to make. Speaking of which, did everyone here had a wish for the holy grail? If so, then raise your hand if you had a wish for it."

Out of the group of servants, Ishtar, Medea, and Gilgamesh raised their hands.

"For me, it was to access to the root of Akasha," Ishtar replied.

"For me, it was to find some happiness with Souichirou-sama," Medea replied.

"For me, it was to make give Saber a human body and make her my wife," Gilgamesh said proudly.

Everyone looked at him with a face of disgust, especially Shirou and Arturia.

"And that will never happen," Arturia angrily stated.

"Ever. So, you might as well give up King of Heroes," Shirou angrily stated as well.

"And while you're at it, you might as well go back spending time with that so-called friend of yours," Archer said with a smirk.

"Why you..." Gilgamesh angrily muttered.

"All right, all aright, no fighting here okay?" Irisviel asked.

Shirou, Arturia, and Archer/EMIYA still were giving Gilgamesh an angry look while Gilgamesh did the same to them as well.

"I said...no fighting here...understand?!" Irisviel said in a menacingly tone.

That immediately got the four of them to shut up, especially Shirou and Archer/EMIYA.

Even Berserker shut his mouth.

After all, they've never heard this tone from Irisviel and it scared them dearly, including Sitonai.

"Jeez, Mom is quite scary..." Shirou, Archer/EMIYA, and Sitonai thought as the mood of the atmosphere went cold for a moment.

"All right! Let's resume the questions!" Irisviel exclaimed cheerfully, returning from her previous state. "This question is for my daughter, Sitonai!"

"For me?"

"Yes! On your first meeting with Shirou, why did you try to kill him?"

Sitonai took a deep sigh before saying, "Well...I blame grandfather for that. He told me lies about how Kiritsugu abandoned me for Shirou and how he broke his promise. After finding about onii-chan, I wanted to kill him before he told me the whole truth."

"I see. Did you two made up later?"

Sitonai let out a smile. "Yup!"

"Well that's great for the both of you. Although I wish you shouldn't have unleashed berserker on him..." Irisviel muttered.

"I know..." Sitonai muttered.

"Anyways! Next question is for Archer!"

"So, I'm up huh?"

"Yup! And this is one you may be familiar to. Just why were you harsh on Shirou during the war?"

"Honestly, it was just that he reminded me of what I used to be."

"Really? How so?"

It was then that Archer/EMIYA decided to put his two cents in. "In the case where he's a reckless, selfless, self-sacrificing idiot that puts others' lives in front of himself, not knowing the consequences of his actions," Archer stated with a smug look on his face.

"Hey!" Shirou yelled out.

"True," Arturia said.

"Definitely," Ishtar said.

"Sorry senpai, but Archer's correct," Parvati said.

"Even when you were my enemy, you still didn't show any care for your health as you focused on the others," Rider said.

"Onii-chan. They're right you know, and I agree with them," Sitonai said.

Shirou lowered his head. "Damn it, Archer..."

"All right, next up is Sasaki!"

"Oh? So, it's my turn now?"

"Yes, and I have one question for you. What was your role in the holy grail war?"

"Well, I was an assassin class, but I was assigned to guard the temple caster was currently residing in."

"Eh? You didn't engage in fights?"

"I did, but only two. To be fair, I was told to stay at the temple doors no matter what."

"I see...did you go crazy when you were staying at the temple a bit too long? I mean, they say staying in one place drives a person crazy."

"Nope."

"All right then, next up Medea! Ask me, what were your thoughts about the holy grail war?"

"Well...my thoughts about the war itself are just normal. I just wanted the holy grail itself and that's it. However, it did help me regain something that I thought was lost forever."

"And what was it?"

Medea smiled. "Love."

"Love?"

"Yes. Ever since I met Souichirou-sama, I regained the missing love that I thought was lost forever because of Jason's betrayal."

"I see. Anyway, moving on berserker, since you were Illya-chan's servant in the holy grail war, what were your thoughts on her?"

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGH! (She is a good master.)"

"I-I see..." Iriviel said nervously. "O-Okay then, onto the next person..."

It was at that moment that everyone's mood went a little foul as the last person was Gilgamesh.

"Gilgamesh, what were your thoughts on the holy grail war?"

"Hmph. Normally, I would not answer a question like that, but since I'm very generous today, I'll consider it an exception."

"Okay. And what are your thoughts?"

"Beside Saber, everyone else in the holy grail war are below me, especially the fakers," Gilgamesh said arrogantly.

In that moment, everyone got pissed at Gilgamesh and gave him a nasty look.

"What? It's true. I mean seriously, all of you mongrels got wasted by Saber in the end. It was the same in the holy grail war before that too," Gilgamesh sneered.

"I see...and who are the fakers you are referring to?"

"The other archer and Saber's pathetic excuse of a former master."

At that moment, Shirou, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Sitonai, Medusa, Irisviel, and even Cu were pissed at him.

After all, he just insulted Shirou in front of the people that knew him a lot.

Arturia was about unleash Excalibur on him, but Shirou placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Let me handle this Arturia," Shirou said while trying to calm her down.

"Are you sure Shirou?" Arturia asked worringly.

"Yeah," he reassured.

"Well...okay..." Arturia muttered as she sat back down.

Shirou then got from his seat and called out Gilgamesh.

"Hey! King of Heroes!"

Gilgamesh turned around and his face turned into one with a scowl on it. "What is it, faker?"

"Let me ask you this. Do you think of yourself as the strongest of all servants?"

"Hah? Of course, I'm the strongest servant out of everyone here!" Gilgamesh said arrogantly.

"Is that so huh? Then tell me, if you claim yourself as the strongest, then how is it that Arturia managed to beat you twice in both holy grail wars? I mean, if you got yourself beaten, then technically, you're not the strongest servant. If anything, it makes Arturia the strongest out of them all, and I can see why. All you've been doing is just standing still like an easy target to hit. No wonder why Arturia kept beating you. You're just standing there like an idiot!"

Everyone gasped at what Shirou just did, especially Arturia and Archer.

After all, he just roasted the king of heroes right in his own face.

"Faker...how dare you...YOU MONGREL!" Gilgamesh yelled out in anger.

"And that's another thing, do you even know what the term mongrel means?"

Silence came into the room after Shirou asked the question.

"It means mixed breed and considering what who your parents are and what your lore is...that makes you...the biggest mongrel out of all of us."

At that moment, everyone was in shock at what Shirou just said and did.

Calling the king of heroes a mongrel, the word he keeps calling to other servants? That's like a death sentence.

And Shirou just did that in front of his face.

For a moment, nothing happened...until a few giggles escaped from Ishtar's, Cu's, Archer/EMIYA's, Medusa's, Irisviel's, and Medea's mouths. Eventually, they couldn't hold it in any longer and they started laughing like a bunch of hyenas.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I CAN'T BELIEVE THE KID JUST SAID THAT!" Cu said while laughing hysterically.

"NO KIDDING! WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THAT EMIYA-KUN HAD THE GUTS TO SAY THAT RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIS STUPID FACE! OH DEAR I THINK I'M GOING TO CRY FROM THIS!" Ishtar yelled out while laughing and crying at the same time.

"That's hell he's walking into...BUT HE'S GOT A GOOD POINT!" Archer/EMIYA said while trying to stop himself from laughing but failed.

"Oh dear...who would have thought...that Saber's former master...would have quite the sharp tongue..." Medea said while laughing.

"Oh my god Shirou...you made mom really happy this time..." Irisviel said while laughing.

"Rider? What's so funny?" Parvati asked as she noticed that half of the group was laughing.

"It appears...that Shirou...has beaten the king of heroes...in the most hilarious and humiliating way possible," Rider replied while laughing.

While Cu, Archer/EMIYA, Ishtar, Medusa, Irisviel, and Medea were having a fit laughing, Arturia, Sitonai, Sasaki, Parvati, and Hercules were looking at Shirou in shock at what he just did.

Gilgamesh on the other hand...was not amused.

Okay. Scratch that, he was pissed.

Really pissed.

Probably even borderline furious to the point where he just wants to unleash EA on Shirou.

And that's what he had on his mind.

"You...FAKER!" He yelled out as he got out of his chair. He then raised his hand and was preparing himself to summon EA. "HOW DARE YOU MAKE FUN OF ME! CALLING ME A MONGREL...YOU DESERVE A THOUSAND, NO WAIT, A NUMBER OF DEATHS CAN'T MAKE UP FOR WHAT YOU DID TO ME! YOU DESERVE TO SUFFER ENDLESSLY! JUST FOR THAT, YOU SHALL BE VAPORIZED BY MY NOBLE PHANTASM! I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS YOU FAKER!"

EA then appeared in his hand, snapping everyone out from their fits of laughter as they moved away from the angry Gilgamesh and his noble phantasm.

"DIE! ENUMA EL-" Gilgamesh yelled out, only to be knocked out by a giant fist out of nowhere.

And that giant fist happened to be made from Irisviel's magic.

"All...right then...let's continue...the talk show...shall we...?" Irisviel said while trying to stop herself from laughing.

After a few minutes of calming down, the show resumed.

"Okay. This is the last question about the holy grail war. Shirou, who won the holy grail war?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying what happened. "Well, me and Arturia won the holy grail war."

"I see. What happened?"

"What happened was that after the winning the holy grail war, we destroyed it."

It was at that point that everyone (besides Arturia, Sitonai, Ishtar, and Hercules) yelled out, "EHHHHH?! WHY?!"

Shirou sighed. "It was because the grail itself was already corrupted. I don't know the details itself, but the reason why the grail itself was corrupted was because during the third holy grail war, the Einzberns tried to cheat in the war by trying to summon a divine spirit. The problem was that servant they summoned...happened to be a god of darkness...and was weak because of the grail itself. After the third holy grail war was over, apparently the god of darkness went back into the grail and corrupted it."

Everyone was shocked at what Shirou just said. "Wow..." they exclaimed.

"Yeah."

"So that's why you destroyed the holy grail in your holy grail war Shirou...I didn't know that."

"Me neither. It wasn't until the later stages of the war that I found out about it."

"And who told you of it?"

Shirou mumbled. "A certain fake priest..."

"I see. Oh! We appear to be out of time!" Irisviel exclaimed as she checked her watch, seeing that time was almost up. "Anyways, I hope that all of you besides Gilgamesh enjoyed this chat session!"

"We sure did," Cu said with a cocky grin.

"Yeah. Seeing Emiya-kun roasting Gilgamesh was probably one of the best things I have ever seen."

"I'll admit...it was quite fun," Archer/EMIYA said.

"Same," Medea replied.

"This chat session was quite enjoyable I'll say," Sasaki said.

"Wasn't today fun onii-chan?" Sitonai asked Shirou.

"It was fun I guess..." Shirou replied. He then felt Arturia tugging his arm.

"Shirou, can we hurry up? I'm hungry..." Arturia muttered.

"All right, all right, just wait until mom teleports us out of here," Shirou replied with a smile.

"Wasn't today good Rider?"

"Yeah. I'll admit, seeing Shirou roasting Gilgamesh just made my day," Medusa said with a smile on her face.

Berserker didn't say anything.

And Gilgamesh...is still down on the ground.

"All right! I'll be teleporting all of you back to where you came from! Bye bye!" Irisviel exclaimed joyfully.

Soon, everyone left the studio, leaving Irisviel alone.

"Well then...today seems quite hilarious and interesting at the same time...although was it a good idea to not tell everyone that I had cameras set up around the room here and this was being broadcasted to all of Chaldea?" Irisviel talked to herself.

After a few minutes, she had her answer.

"Nah."

And to this day, the roasting of Gilgamesh from Emiya Shirou became a well-known topic to all of the servants in Chaldea...


	16. Cooking Battle

This could possibly one of the weirdest battles Shirou has ever faced in his entire life.

One that didn't involve any swords, or magic, or noble phantasms, or anything violent.

But rather a cooking battle.

And his opponent?

Beni-enma, who is also known as one of the greatest cooks in Chaldea.

And the judges? Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci.

As Beni-enma and Shirou were having a cook-off while Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci were watching while giving out commentary, Shirou had one thought to himself.

_"How did things end up this way...?"_

_(A few hours ago...)_

Shirou was just having a normal day in Chaldea's cafeteria, cleaning up the counter top as he was preparing for the daily lunch for the servants.

However, that would change...

When Beni-enma came into the room with a grumpy face, alongside with Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci.

"Ah, Master, Mashu, Da Vinci. Nice to see you."

"Y-Yeah. Nice to see you too..." Ritsuka muttered nervously.

While Shirou recognized Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci, he didn't recognize Beni-enma at first glance and asked, "Uh master, who is the servant right next to you and is staring at me intensely?"

"Well...it's a long story..."

Beni-enma gave Shirou a long stare and asked, "Tell me, are you the new servant known as Emiya Shirou?"

"Yes. And who are you? Can I help you with something?"

"My name is Beni-enma, the bearer of the title, Tongue-cut sparrow, and a graduate of the Beni-enma Culinary School. I am the teacher of the well-known cooks in all of Chaldea and has taught many servants who can't even cook as well."

"I see...and what business do you have with me Beni-enma san?" Shirou asked.

Beni-enma took a deep breath before saying, "Emiya Shirou. I challenge you to a cook-off!"

Shirou was shocked at Beni-enma's declaration. "Huh?"

"You heard me quite clearly. I challenge you to a cook-off right now!"

Shirou was speechless for moment. After a few seconds of piecing the information together, he asked, "But why?"

"It's because I keep hearing from other servants that your cooking is very good! Even on par with the red bowman who is my rival! That got me curious, considering that there is only a few who can rival the red bowman! And not to mention the fact that you already started cooking in Chaldea's kitchen without my permission and approval!"

"I-Is that so?"

"Yeah! So, I need to make sure if your skills can live up to the rumors people have been talking about and to make sure if you are worth enough to be in Chaldea's kitchen!"

"I-I see. What are the conditions of the cook-off?"

"Good idea. Let me check in the kitchen first," Beni-enma said as she went into the kitchen and checked up the fridge. As he checked in the fridge, he saw a large amount of pork in there, giving her an idea on what topic should the match focus on. "All right, the theme of the match will be pork. Is that okay with you?"

"I'm okay with that. What are the rules?"

"It's simple. We will use any tools and ingredients there are in the kitchen. Or course, there will be a time limit."

"I see. How shall we decide who is the winner?"

"Don't worry, I already brought over master and his companions to be the judges of this match."

Shirou looked at Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci and asked, "Why?"

"Well...to be honest...I wanted to do something like this," Ritsuka said nervously.

"S-So do I," Mashu said nervously.

"Me too," Da Vinci said.

Shirou sighed and asked Beni-enma, "How is the winner decided?"

"The winner will be decided with a voting system. The contestant with the most votes from the judges wins the match. If you win, then I'll accept you as a chef of Chaldea."

"And if I lose?"

"Then I'll take you in as my disciple and will put you through hellish training until your skills are deemed acceptable. Not only that, but until then, you are banned from the kitchen until I deemed so."

"I see...then I accept," Shirou said, knowing that he must win the match because if he was banned from the kitchen...then Arturia and her alternate versions would go on a rampage after hearing that.

And even Archer wouldn't be able to calm them down from their rampage.

"Good. Master, shall you do the honors of starting the match?"

Ritsuka muttered and cleared his breath before nervously saying," Let the match begin!"

And the two started cooking with what was in the fridge along with the pork...

_(Back to the present...)_

"Man, can't believe that today would be the day where I would be having a cooking battle with Beni-enma, who happened to be one of Chaldea's greatest chefs and apparently Archer's rival in cooking. What's more, if I lose, Beni-enma will take me in as a student and will ban me from the kitchen until she deems me worthy again...pretty sure that Arturia and her other versions will not take that very well," Shirou thought as he was peeling an onion of its skin and chopping it.

Meanwhile, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci were looking at the match with great interest.

"What do you think they'll be cooking up today senpai?" Mashu asked.

"I don't know Mashu. However, one's thing for certain is that the dishes these two will make will always delicious, so it's going to be hard to tell which one is better," Ritsuka replied.

"You do have a point there. I mean both chefs are very well-versed in cooking," Da Vinci said.

It was then that Archer/EMIYA came into the cafeteria. "Master?"

"Ah! Archer!" Ritsuka said.

"Uh master, what is going on here?" Archer/EMIYA asked as he was looking at the cooking battle between Shirou and Beni-enma.

"Oh that? Well...Beni-enma wanted to make sure if Shirou was worthy enough to be a chef in the kitchen. If Shirou fails...then Beni-enma would put him in her hellish training regime and would ban him from the kitchen until otherwise."

"I see..." Archer/EMIYA said as he looked at the cooking match with amusement. "Good luck my younger self. You should seriously know how strict Beni-enma is when it comes to her hellish training regime and cooking. It made Tamamo-no-Mae, Kiyohime, Osakabehime, Takiyashahime, and Suzuka Gozen address her as "Beni-sensei," and respect and even fear her. Trust me, she's so scary when it comes to cooking that even I fear her sometimes! Also, if by any chance you lose, then all of Chaldea will be screwed if Arturia and her alternate versions finds out that you were banned from the kitchen..." he thought as he took a seat.

"By the way Archer, are you going to be judging this like the rest of us?" Mashu asked.

"Nah. I'm not interested in that, so I'm going to watch from the sidelines," Archer/EMIYA replied.

"Suit yourself then," Da Vinci said.

Back at the kitchen, Shirou and Beni-enma were having a heated cooking battle. While both contestants were using the same ingredient, they were making separate dishes.

For Beni-enma, he was making Shogayaki, which is Japanese-style ginger pork.

For Shirou, he was making Katsudon, which is a bowl of rice topped with a deep-fried pork cutlet, an egg, vegetables, and condiments.

On Beni-enma's side of the kitchen, she grated the onion, garlic, and ginger in a small bowl and added soy sauce, mirin, sake, and sugar. Afterwards, she grabbed the pork, sliced it thinly, and seasoned it with salt and pepper. Meanwhile on Shirou's side of the kitchen, he pounded the pork chops and seasoned it with salt and pepper.

However, what happened next made Beni-enma interested.

Shirou then grabbed a yam, grated it, and mixed it onto the flour. Not only that, but he grabbed two cast iron pans and filled it with an even layer of oil. He then made the temperature of one pan higher than the other.

"Did Shirou just grated a yam into the flour? And those two pans of oil...what is he up to? Is he planning on double frying?" Beni-enma thought as she saw Shirou doing that.

Shirou then dusted the pork chops with an even coating of the flour. He then gathered a few bowls and in one of them, beaten an egg while in the other put panko breadcrumbs in it.

"So far, Shirou has shown me a few interesting things...adding grated yam to the flour...and those two pans...wonder what else will he show me..." Beni-enma thought as she observed Shirou's action before heading back to her own work.

As Beni-enma focused on her work, she then grabbed a non-sticking frying pan and added cooking oil on medium-high heat. She then placed the meat in a single layer as she was cooking the meat into batches. She then flipped the meat over when the bottom side of it was golden brown. Finally, when the meat was cooked thoroughly, she then added the seasonings and chopped scallions. She then served it on a plate.

"Well then, now that the shogayaki is done, I need to do the sides," Beni-enma thought. She then started to shred some Japanese cabbage into thin strips and sliced a tomato into wedges.

Meanwhile, Shirou was working hard as well. Shirou placed the floured pork chops into the panko breadcrumbs and pressed it into it to give it an even coating. He then placed the pork chops into the first pan for about ten seconds before transferring it into the other pan. After ten minutes has passed, he then took them out of the second pan of hot oil, sliced them, and laid them to rest. Afterwards, he grabbed two bowls and added dashi stock, sugar, soy sauce, and Mirin to the first bowl while adding two eggs to the other one and slightly beaten them.

Shirou then grabbed a third pan, added the sliced onions from earlier, and fried them until they were transparent and caramelized. He then added the stock mixture and the sliced pork chops and laid them over the onions. Afterwards, he drizzled the beaten egg over everything and cooked it over a medium low flame heat.

While the egg was settling over a medium low flame, Shirou then cut up some scallions and was about to get some rice from the rice cooker.

Meanwhile, Beni-enma had the same idea and went to get some rice from the rice cooker.

It was then that there was one small problem.

And it was who gets to go first.

For a few seconds, there was silence between the two until Shirou broke the silence first.

"So...do you want to use the rice cooker first?" Shirou asked.

"I don't mind if you use it first," Beni-enma replied politely.

"I see...well then, guess I'll go first then," Shirou said as he scooped up three bowls' worth of rice. Soon afterwards, Beni-enma did the same.

On Shirou's side of the kitchen, the egg settled in, telling Shirou to put it over the rice and he garnished it with the chopped scallions from earlier.

It was then that both contestants were done.

"All right, I'm done here," Shirou said.

"Same here as well," Beni-enma said.

Soon, the two prepared their dishes to the judges. As Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci looked at Shirou and Beni-enma's dishes, they were in marvel at how beautiful they looked despite being common dishes.

"Wow! They look delicious!" Da Vinci exclaimed.

"No kidding!" Mashu said.

"Yeah. Now then, I'm going to try Beni-enma's dish first then," Ritsuka said as he took a bite from Beni-enma's dish. Mashu and Da Vinci soon followed Ritsuka as well. As the judges took a bite, the flavors of the ginger pork instantly hit them in their mouths. "Wow! This is good!" Ritsuka exclaimed.

"Yeah! The taste of the pork really does go through your mouth!" Mashu exclaimed.

"And this flavor...you added sugar to this, didn't you Beni-enma?" Da Vinci asked.

"That's right," Beni-enma replied.

Eventually, the judges finished Beni-enma's dish and were satisfied with the result.

"That was a great dish Beni-enma!" Ritsuka exclaimed happily.

"Yeah! The pork and veggies tasted amazing!" Mashu said with a smile on her face.

"I wouldn't agree more with Ritsuka and Mashu!" Da Vinci exclaimed.

As Beni-enma heard the praise coming out from the judges, she looked at Shirou and thought, "Well then...let's see what you have to offer Emiya Shirou..."

"Good luck my younger self..." Archer/EMIYA thought.

Soon, the judges had their eyes on Shirou's dish.

"Wow! Shirou's dish is a katsudon!" Ritsuka exclaimed.

"It looks beautiful!" Mashu said.

"Let's see if it tastes good as it looks..." Da Vinci said.

Soon, the group of judges took a bite of Shirou's katsudon and in an instantly, their faces went into pure happiness the moment the food touched their mouths.

"This is delicious! I never had a katsudon this good before!" Ritsuka exclaimed.

"Yeah! Shirou's cooking doesn't seem to let down either!" Da Vinci exclaimed.

"Definitely! It's going to be hard to choose who's better!" Mashu said as she took another bite of her katsudon.

Soon, like what happened with Beni-enma's dish, the group of judges were finished with Shirou's dish.

And like before, they were satisfied with the food as well.

Which made things hard for the judges.

Because both dishes were equally good, and they couldn't tell which one was better.

After a few minutes of thinking and consulting with one another, the judges came with one conclusion.

"After a few minutes of consulting, we have come to decision," Ritsuka said.

Shirou, Archer/EMIYA, and Beni-enma listened, wanting to know what the results are.

And the decision was something they did not expect.

"We have decided...that the result of the match...is a tie..." Ritsuka said.

"What?!" they thought in unison.

Before anyone could say anything, both Da Vinci and Mashu explained their reasons why the result was a tie.

"Well...you see...both dishes were so good...that it was hard to tell which was better..." Mashu nervously said.

"Yeah. And the amount of hard work put into it, as an artist, I can feel the amount of heart and soul put into it," Da Vinci said.

"So...can both of you please...accept this...?" Ritsuka asked with a hint of begging.

For a moment, nobody didn't say anything.

"Oh god, I think I have a bad feeling about this..." Ritsuka thought.

However, things went differently from what Ritsuka thought would happen.

Because Beni-enma started laughing.

"Hahahahahaha! Well then, never thought that this match would end in a tie!"

Beni-enma then turned to Shirou.

"Emiya Shirou, you clearly have shown me that you can handle Chaldea's kitchen! Therefore, I accept you as one of my rivals!" Beni-enma said heartfully.

"So that's means..." Shirou said.

"Yes. You are not banned from the kitchen."

Both Shirou and Archer/EMIYA sighed, now knowing that the worst-case scenario in their minds was adverted.

"So, what do we do now? Want to have a rematch?"

"Maybe later, but right now, there's a battle I need to head to."

"Oh really? And what kind of battle would it be?"

It was at that moment that rumbling noises were heard outside of the cafeteria.

"Oh boy, here they come..." Shirou and Archer/EMIYA thought.

In an instant, Arturia and her alternate versions stormed into the cafeteria, yelling, "SHIROU! FOOD!" with hungry gazes.

Both Shirou and Archer/EMIYA sighed. "Well, here we go again..." they muttered.

"Need some help you two?" Beni-enma asked.

Shirou smiled. "Yes please."

"Definitely," Archer said.

And the three chefs went back to the kitchen, cooking up meals for the den of lions...


	17. Chatting With the Kings of Heroes

"Hey you. Emiya Shirou."

Shirou immediately groaned, knowing that tone of voice and who would say that.

"What now Gilgamesh? I don't have time for your-" Shirou moaned as he turned around, expecting to see Gilgamesh in his golden glory and arrogance...

Only to realize that this was not the Gilgamesh he knew.

The Gilgamesh that was in front of him now was Caster Gilgamesh.

"Do you mind for a minute or so?"

Shirou was confused for a moment.

"Y-You are Gilgamesh...right?"

"Yeah."

"Archer version or Caster version?"

"Caster version, so don't even think of any ideas. I am nothing like my counterpart over there in which I'll admit, he's too arrogant."

"You have no idea..." Shirou muttered, remembering how arrogant Archer Gilgamesh can be. "So...what do you want with me?"

"I'm here to get answers from you."

"Answers? What answers?"

"The answers to why my counterpart hates you so much," Caster Gilgamesh said.

"Well...why don't we explain this in another location. Is that okay for you?"

"Hmph. If I get the answers, I don't care. Also, make this quick, I got some work to finish later."

Shirou then took Caster Gilgamesh to one of Chaldea's recreation rooms to have their little chat. As they got there, they sat down on a vacant sofa.

"So...what do you want to talk about?" Shirou asked.

"Well, first things first, what is with the problem between my counterpart and you, Emiya Shirou?"

"Well...it's a long story if you don't mind. You see...apparently my world's version of Gilgamesh had a thing for Arturia. What happened was that he wanted to make her his wife ever since the fourth holy grail war in my world, and that's been going on for quite a while now."

"Really now?" Caster Gilgamesh groaned with a face palm, knowing that he was going to get a headache from his archer counterpart's actions.

"Yeah, and here's when I come into the picture. During the fifth holy grail war, me and Arturia fell in love with each other and he did not take our relationship that well."

"Is that so? How well did he not take it?"

Shirou sighed. "He tried to kill me immediately on first contact."

Caster Gilgamesh looked at him in disbelief. "You're kidding me."

"I'm not. And not only that, but he even tried to kill me again during the time I was in Fuyuki's church."

"Jeez. My counterpart seems to not have any class then. I mean come on! Trying to kill somebody just because that person is dating your crush?! That's something even a mongrel wouldn't do!"

Shirou was shocked at what Caster Gilgamesh just said. "Is this really Gilgamesh?! The same Gilgamesh that tried to kill me twice when I was alive?! Okay, screw calling him another version of him, it's more like this is a different person all together!" he thought.

"Hey, speak up," Caster Gilgamesh said, snapping Shirou out of his trance.

"Sorry. It's just...that...well..."

"Let me guess. You never expected a version of Gilgamesh to act not like a complete arrogant person that just stands there every time whenever a fight happens correct?"

"Y-Yeah..."

Caster Gilgamesh. "I can't blame you. I get that reaction from everybody here in Chaldea, and I literally mean everyone. You won't believe the many times I had people confusing me with my archer counterpart, and it made life quite hectic for me."

"How so?"

This time, it was Caster Gilgamesh's turn to sigh. "Apparently, my archer counterpart made quite a lot of enemies and they would just keep giving me the harsh glares."

"Jeez, that sounds rough."

"Yeah. Not to mention the fact combined with the amount of work I need to do here...honestly, it's a pain in the butt..." Gilgamesh muttered.

For once, Shirou felt sorry for Gilgamesh...well, for his caster counterpart that is...

"By the way, you said you always had work to do right?"

"Yeah."

"Just how much though?"

Caster Gilgamesh sighed again. "Enough to create multiple stacks of papers high enough to make multiple towers..."

Shirou was surprised. "Jeez. It's a wonder that you haven't died overworking yourself to death."

Caster Gilgamesh was silent.

"Wait...you did die from overworking yourself to death?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah. You got a problem with that?" Caster Gilgamesh replied.

"Well no...it's just that...well...I've never heard of a heroic spirit die fade away from existence from overworking."

"You're telling me. I didn't know that was even possible until now. In fact, the way I found out that I died from overworking myself was simple! One time I just took a nap, and suddenly, I'm in the underworld looking at Ereshkigal! Can you imagine that?!"

"Honestly no."

"I know right!?"

As Shirou and Caster Gilgamesh continued their conversation, Shirou asked a question.

"Hey, can I ask you a question?"

"As long as you don't waste my time, then sure."

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "Why is it that your archer counterpart keeps calling other servants mongrels despite being one himself?"

Gilgamesh sighed. "It's kind of a long story. You see, it's probably because of that useless goddess's, also known as Ishtar, fault that my archer counterpart is like this."

"What happened between your archer counterpart and Ishtar-san?"

"Well...Ishtar killed his best friend in front of him with the bull of heaven."

"You mean Enkidu?"

"Yeah, and ever since then, he's had a huge hatred for gods and goddesses because of what that useless goddess did to him. That's probably the reason why my archer counterpart seems to call other mongrels, due to his heritage that he's been trying to hide and his hatred of gods and goddesses"

"I see..."

"Yeah. Anyways, sorry if my archer counterpart still continues to be a pain in the ass."

"Nah. It's okay. I got used to it...somehow..."

"Well then, if you don't mind, I've got some work to get back to."

"Right."

And the two servants got off from the couch and proceeded to go their own ways.

_"Wow. Can't believe that the guy I just talked to is the caster counterpart to the same arrogant Gilgamesh that has a giant grudge against me. More so, he wasn't arrogant at all! He was actually polite for once!"_

_"Huh. So that's the Emiya Shirou that my archer counterpart seems to have a huge grudge against. Although if anything, that grudge seems to be unjust and petty. Speaking of which, why does my archer counterpart keeps calling him a faker?"_

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou couldn't believe his eyes at the sight in front of him.

Why? Because in front of him was apparently Gilgamesh.

In his younger form.

_"Okay, seriously, this is getting a bit out of hand here. Why is there a kid version of Gilgamesh in front of me?! It's like everyone that I know from the fifth holy grail war happens to have an alternate version running around in Chaldea! Jeez, just what is the throne of heroes and Chaldea capable of?! This is crazy!"_

As Shirou was in his thoughts, Kid Gilgamesh snapped him out of him.

"Hey, mister Shirou, are you okay?" Kid Gilgamesh asked.

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine..." Shirou muttered as he turned around to the other way of the hallway and walked away.

However, Kid Gilgamesh followed him, making Shirou sigh. "Any reason why are you following me?"

"Yeah. It's because you seem interesting."

Shirou sighed again. "You're Gilgamesh, aren't you?"

"Yes. How did you know?"

"Well...you're sort of giving off the aura your older versions are setting off from them."

Kid Gilgamesh sighed. "Well I can't blame you. I've been told from other servants that my counterparts seem to give off an aura of authority, although it appears that my archer counterpart seems to add a sense of arrogance to it."

"You have no idea..." Shirou muttered.

"I take that you met both of them?"

"Yup."

"And I suppose they must hate you then?"

"Well...the archer version does. The caster version, however, seems like a good fellow. Although I worry about his health though...even if he's a servant..."

"How so?"

Shirou sighed before saying, "Apparently he died from overworking himself once."

Kid Gilgamesh nearly stopped at Shirou's statement. "You're kidding me."

"I'm not joking. He told me that one day, he just took a nap, and the next thing he knew was that he woke up in the underworld with Ereshkigal looking at him directly."

"Wow. Never expected that to happen to my older caster self. Speaking of which, you and my older archer self don't get along with each other?"

Shirou sighed. "That's an understatement. We don't just get along with each other, we actually despise each other to the bitter end."

"Really? Why?"

Shirou sighed again. "It's a long story. You see, what happened was that during the fourth holy grail war, apparently your older archer self has a huge crush on Arturia. Later, in the fifth holy grail war, when me and Arturia fell in love together, your older archer self didn't take me and Arturia's relationship very well."

"Is that so? How bad was the first meeting between you two?"

"Well...he tried to kill me on sight."

An awkward silence appeared.

"Oh. Was it during in battle?"

"No, it was on a date night between me and Arturia."

Kid Gilgamesh mentally groaned as he heard that. "Really?! He tried to kill you on the sight of you and Arturia on a date night?!"

"Yeah..." Shirou said sheepishly.

"Jeez, he must did not take it well..." Kid Gilgamesh muttered.

"You have no idea. In fact, do you even want to know what he said before he tried to kill me?"

Kid Gilgamesh stayed quiet, waiting for Shirou's answer."

He said, "Don't take other people's possessions without permission, boy."

This time, Kid Gilgamesh facepalmed himself over the arrogant declaration his future archer self has done. "Jeez, that sounds too arrogant, even by my standards of arrogance," he groaned.

"You aren't wrong about that. I mean after all; he did just call Arturia a possession that was his."

"Wow."

"Yeah. And even to this day, that moment still angers me..." Shirou muttered as he clenched his fist very hard.

Kid Gilgamesh notices Shirou's fist clenching and said, "I can clearly see that..."

"Yeah." Shirou then relaxes his hand. "Anyways, after he said that, he then tried to kill me. In fact, he even tried to kill me with EA."

"Really? If that's the case, then how come are you still alive? I mean, no offense, but no one hasn't survived EA."

"Well...let's just say...I had something that even I didn't know I had up until that moment."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. However, that wasn't the only time he tried to kill me. Later, he tried to kill me in a church...after I was recovering from a stab wound from a certain spear..."

_(Meanwhile in Chaldea...)_

Cu sneezed. "Jeez. Who's talking about me?" Cu thought.

_(Back to Shirou and Kid Gilgamesh...)_

"Jeez. That sounds hard for you..."

"Yeah. It was when that after the fifth holy grail was over that I was glad that I would never see that guy ever again...well until now that is."

"Yeah. Anyway, sorry for my archer counterpart being a pain in the ass on you," Kid Gilgamesh apologized. "Honestly, I don't know what made him like this...and honestly, I hope I don't either..."

"Yeah. And you want to know the worst part about this?"

Kid Gilgamesh listened to what Shirou was about to say.

"He's still going on with that failed proposal of his to Arturia."

Kid Gilgamesh sighed again. "And let me guess, he wants to make Arturia his bride, but Arturia keeps rejecting it. Correct?"

"Yup."

"Jeez. Even I know when to give up in some situations...he must be stubborn as a mule if he's still going with that..."

"You have no idea...anyways, you seem to act differently from your counterparts."

"Yeah. I get that a lot. You might even say that I'm the past version of themselves."

"So...you're carefree then?"

"Eh, you could say that. Not to the extent of my archer counterpart though. Also, unlike him, I don't have any desire to take anything or anyone I see on sight as a possession."

Shirou was surprised at what Kid Gilgamesh just said. "You don't?"

"Nope."

"Wow. You really are different from your archer counterpart. You act more like your caster counterpart...well, without the overworking tendencies off course."

Kid Gilgamesh smiled at him. "I guess I'll take that a complement then. By the way, there's something that's bothering my mind."

"What is it?" Shirou asked.

"Why does my archer counterpart keeps calling you faker?"

Shirou sighed. "Not this question again..." he thought.


	18. Talking with Merlin

Shirou was in a situation every magus in every time of every world would wish or kill to have.

And that situation was having a conversation with Merlin, the magus of flowers.

Right now, Shirou and Merlin were having a conversation in Chaldea's cafeteria, sipping on tea and having snacks of the sort.

And why were Shirou and Merlin having a conversation?

Because of two things.

One was that Merlin wanted to thank the man who made his student and her alternate versions happy.

And the other was that Merlin was bored.

So, he decided to do this.

"I'll admit, this tea is quite interesting Shirou," Merlin said as he sipped on a cup of Japanese-style green tea Shirou made for him earlier. "I never had this type of tea before, even in Camelot."

Shirou smiled. "Glad you liked it Merlin," he said as he took a bite of a rice cracker he picked up earlier. "You should try the rice crackers as well.

"Why thank you...Queen Shirou," he said with a teasing tone of voice.

Shirou sighed. "Please don't call me that..." he muttered.

As Merlin continued to sip on his tea while grabbing a rice cracker for himself, Shirou's thoughts went back into the past as he thought of the events that brought him here...

_(A few hours ago...)_

Shirou was walking down Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business.

When out of nowhere, a storm of flower pedals was floating around him, confusing him.

"What the...?" Shirou thought as his sight was temporarily blinded by the amount of flower pedals in front of him. Eventually, the flower pedals stopped floating in front of him and flew to another direction. "What's going on? Why were there flower pedals floating in front of me?" Shirou thought.

However, as Shirou looked at the flower pedals that fell onto the ground, he noticed an envelope on the ground. Shirou then picked up the envelope and opened it, wanting to know who the sender was since it didn't have anything that printed on it.

Inside the envelope was a note.

And it said this:

Dear Shirou, I hope that you aren't busy right now, but I hope that you can join me in the cafeteria for a daily chat.

From Merlin.

P.S: Don't try to reject it or else I'll force you to come here with magic.

Shirou sighed. "Well this is not what I expect today to end up..." Shirou thought as he was done reading the note. "But then again, every day in Chaldea is always unexpected with these many servants around here..."

After a few minutes of thinking, Shirou decided to go to the cafeteria to have a chat with Merlin.

Just to avoid the hassle of being carried off to the cafeteria by Merlin's magic. Root knows what would happen if he rejected the invitation.

The thought of that made Shirou shudder instantly.

_"Well...I better get going then..."_

(Back to the present...)

"So, how's Arturia and her alternate versions doing?" Merlin asked as he sipped on his tea.

"They're doing fine."

"I see. Have you been treating them well? Especially when you're "alone" with them?" Merlin asked with a coy smile on his face.

Shirou sighed after seeing that smile from Merlin's face, knowing that smile wants to know if anything "interesting" happened between Shirou and the Arturias. "Yes. And Merlin, we haven't done "that" yet."

"Aww...I wanted to know if my student and her alternate versions finally learned how to be a woman..." Merlin pouted.

"Really Merlin? Are you always like this in front of Arturia and her alternate versions?" Shirou asked while taking a bite of a rice cracker.

"Oh, come on! Sure, I may be a jokester considering my heritage, but I don't always act like this in front of her and her alternate versions you know!" Merlin argued in defense.

"Oh really?" Shirou asked, not convinced.

"Yeah!"

Shirou sighed as he took another bite of his rice cracker. "So...how's life in Chaldea for you Merlin?"

"Hm? Oh, it's a blast here. So many servants to have fun with, master's an interesting guy, and Arturia is here as well. Honestly, Chaldea feels like a playground where I'm able to have fun freely, and I like it. However, even with my clairvoyance, I did not expect to see so many versions of her..."

"No kidding. When I first got here, I was surprised to see that Arturia has many versions of herself. Not to mention the fact that some of those versions have...well...different outfits..." Shirou said with a blush.

Merlin noticed Shirou's behavior and had a smug grin on his face. "Well, well, you're fantasizing about my student and her alternate versions now, aren't you?"

"N-No! Why would you think that?!"

"Hey, come on now, you can just tell me," Merlin said teasingly.

"W-Why would I!?"

"Come on now, don't be shy! Look, I'll even help you start off the conversation! Now, which one do you think is sexier, the lancer versions of Arturia or the ruler version of her? Or, which Arturia do you think is more cuter? The original, or the Alter, or the Lily, or the Archer, or the Rider Alter, or the Santa Alter, or the Assassin, or the Berserker, or the Foreigner? " Merlin jokingly asked.

"C-Can we talk about something else?!" Shirou blabbered uncontrollably as images of lancer Arturia, lancer Arturia Alter, and ruler Arturia came into his mind and he tried to get rid of the mental images.

Merlin laughed at Shirou's reaction to the question he asked earlier. "Wow. Now that Shirou's here, life in Chaldea has got a lot more interesting around here, and it's already interesting enough! Now I have another person to tease forever! And he's Arturia's sheath, former master, and queen! Which gives me an opportunity to see if Arturia has any embarrassing secrets from her time as Shirou's servant! And she's not here right now!" he thought.

After Shirou had a few minutes calming himself down from the heat he was feeling in his head from the mental imagining, he took a sip of his black tea and said, "There's one question that still puzzles me Merlin."

"Go on."

"How are you even here? I mean, Arturia did say that you were locked in a tower in Avalon, so how are you even here? In fact, you're still alive, aren't you?"

"Oh that? Yeah, I can ask someone to summon myself as a caster class using independent manifestation. In this case, I asked master to summon me to Chaldea and that's how I got here."

"Is that so..."

"Yeah."

For a short while, there was silence between the two...

Until Merlin said something that literally knocked Shirou's socks off...if he had any.

"You want to know something Shirou?"

"What?"

"I envy you sometimes..."

Shirou was confused from Merlin's statement. "What do you mean by that?"

Merlin let out a sigh. "Isn't it obvious? I'm jealous of you that you're able to attract girls without trying."

Shirou spat out his tea. "W-W-W-What?! What are you talking about?!" He exclaimed.

Merlin sighed again. "Are you this dense? I've been watching you for a while, and I'm impressed. Not only you managed to attract my student and her alternate versions, but you also attracted Ishtar, her rider self, Ereshkigal, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Astraea, and somehow, Nero and her alternate versions. I mean, even I don't work that fast! And I'm half incubus! In fact, I'm even tempted to ask you tips on how to attract girls fast like how you did! So, tell me! How do you manage to attract girls that easily Shirou?! Is it some sort of skill of yours or is it a book that you read?! What is it?!" he exclaimed as his tone went higher.

Shirou was speechless from Merlin's outburst. "Is this what Merlin thinks about most about the time? Even after hearing from Arturia about how Merlin acts like a pervert sometimes, seeing it in the flesh is just...wow," he thought.

Realizing that his tone went a bit too far, Merlin calmed down and took a deep breath. "Sorry. I accidently let my emotions loose in a moment of envy."

"I-I can see that..." Shirou said awkwardly while being a little bit scared of Merlin at the same time.

"So...yeah, what is your secret Shirou?"

Shirou sighed "Honestly Merlin, I have no clue what you are talking about. However, all I can say is one thing only."

Merlin listened, waiting to know what secret Shirou holds.

"I'm not a womanizer."

Merlin was baffled. "Really?"

"Yeah."

For a short while, there was silence between the two, until Merlin said something.

"I see," he said in a calm voice before sipping on his tea.

Shirou was glad that nothing bad did happen. "Wow. I'm guessing Merlin took it well..." he thought.

"Anyways, I want to thank you," Merlin said.

"For what?"

"Isn't it obvious? For giving my student the one thing that she had lost in her entire life, which was her happiness as a human. The same can be said for her alternate versions as well, considering their reaction to seeing you in Chaldea for the first time."

"Well, I did promise myself to make Arturia herself happy, even that applies to her alternate versions as well," Shirou said with a smile on his face.

"Yeah, but that's not it. You also mended the relationship between her and Mordred as well, making them to get along with each other for once! Not to mention the fact that you cleared up the misunderstandings Mashu had with Lancelot and got them to get along with each other. And there's the matter of Gawain's cooking..."

"Oh yeah. Arturia told me about Gawain's cooking. Was it really that bad before I started to give him cooking lessons?"

Merlin went serious for a moment. "Trust me Shirou, before you came along and gave Gawain cooking lessons, none of us, I repeat, none of us wanted to eat any of Gawain's cooking. Seriously, he only knew one thing to cook, which didn't involve any preparation."

"You don't have to say that about Gawain you know..." Shirou muttered.

"Sorry, but it's true. You have no idea about how bad his lack of knowledge of what cooking is. During our time inside and outside of Camelot, all the Knights of the Round beside Gawain dreaded the day when it was his turn to cook, and it wouldn't be considered cooking as well."

"Really?"

"Yeah. In fact, there were times where me and the knights would make jokes about Gawain's cooking. One of which was what was going to kill us first, the Saxons or Gawain's cooking."

"Wow."

"Yeah. Anyways, after you came along, it felt like you just did us a favor by fixing Gawain's cooking. Although I'll admit, I would have never expected your cooking to attract so many people. Especially to the point where some people wanted to learn under you."

"Oh yeah. I still remember the time where after I taught Gawain the basics of cooking, all of the Knights of the Round came up to me and asked me how to cook the next day," Shirou said with a chuckle.

"Really? How did it go?" Merlin asked.

"It went well, especially for Lancelot," Shirou replied. "He seemed to be the most excited out of them all."

"I can see why...Lancelot probably asked for those lessons for Mashu's, or rather Galahad's, sake..." Merlin thought.

"Anyways, there's something I need to tell you Merlin."

Merlin listened. "What is it?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "Thank you for telling me what to do in order to see Arturia again. If it hadn't been for you appearing in my dreams, I wouldn't even be here right now."

Merlin smiled. "You don't have to thank me. All I did was that I just gave you a hint on what to do to see Arturia again. And you did it, although the wish was fulfilled...in a different way I might say."

"You can say that again," Shirou replied with a sigh.

"Yeah. By the way Shirou, I want to ask you something."

"What is it Merlin?"

"What was it like being Arturia's master?"

Shirou gulped at Merlin's question. "Why do you want to ask?"

Merlin gave him a coy smile. "Oh...for no reason..."

Shirou did not like the smile Merlin was giving him. "I have a bad feeling about this..." he thought.

"Well?"

After a few seconds of thinking, he decided to answer Merlin's question while keeping his life with Arturia a secret.

However, before he could even do that, he felt a familiar presence behind him. Not only that, but Merlin's happy face turned into a face of fear.

"Merlin...what were you talking about with Shirou..." a familiar voice said.

Shirou turned around to see who it was. As it turns out, it was Arturia.

And she looked angry.

"H-Hello Arturia. I-I was having a chat with Shirou here..." Merlin muttered.

"Oh really?"

"Y-Yeah..."

Arturia then looked at Shirou and said, "Shirou, do you mind leaving for a bit? I need to have a chat with my old teacher here..." with a smile but in a menacing voice.

"Y-Yes..." Shirou replied before running away quickly, leaving Merlin alone with Arturia.

"Well then...now can you tell me what you were talking about with Shirou?" Arturia asked Merlin in a menacing tone of voice.

Merlin gulped. He was not getting out of this situation any time soon...


	19. Spending Time With Some Snakes

"Shirou! Look out!" Medusa yelled out.

Shirou turned around to see an enemy charging at him. Shirou placed himself in a defensive position and countered his charge by sidestepping and slashed him right in the back.

"Thanks Rider!"

Medusa didn't say anything as she used her daggers and threw them across the area they were in, effectively killing another enemy. She then pulled the chains attached to her daggers, returning them to her hand before she started to run toward another enemy.

The enemy was caught off guard as he panicked when Medusa came up to him as quick as a bullet, giving her the chance to kill him by slashing him with her daggers.

"Gaaaaaahhhhh!" the enemy screamed as he fell to the ground and died from blood loss, letting Medusa to do the same to the other enemies.

Meanwhile, Shirou was slashing his enemies down with his katana in swift strokes. As he checked the area to see if any more enemies would pop up, he then dodged an arrow that an archer shot from the trees. He then materialized a copy of Kanshou and threw it at the archer hiding in the trees. As he fired the sword at the archer, the archer died instantly as he was impaled by it. "Okay, that should be the last of the enemies..." he thought.

"Shirou."

Shirou turned around to see Medusa and a trail of the corpses of her enemies.

"Rider?"

"It seems like you are done with your side of the enemies," Medusa stated calmly.

"Yes. And I suppose that the same has been done for you as well."

"Yeah. Anyways, let's go back to master's side."

"Got it."

Shirou and Medusa then left the bloodstained area and headed towards where Ritsuka and Mashu was. As Shirou and Medusa were walking towards Ritsuka and Mashu were, Medusa was looking back at Shirou this whole time and this continued until nightfall came.

_(A few hours later...)_

"All right, I think that's enough wood for tonight.," Ritsuka said as he grabbed some wood to make a campfire.

"You think so senpai?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. For now, let's head back to the campfire."

Mashu nodded and went back to the campfire along with Ritsuka.

Meanwhile, Shirou and Medusa were hunting wild animals for food to eat. "I think that should be enough meat..." Shirou thought as he looked at the amount of meat caught from the animals he hunted.

"Shirou, do you think this amount of meat is enough for master and Mashu?" Medusa asked while bringing over her amount of meat.

"Yeah. All I need to do is to skin the meat. Want to help me?"

"Sure."

Shirou and Medusa then prepared to skin the meat off to make it more edible while also getting supplies as well. As Shirou and Medusa were doing the task, Medusa asked Shirou a question.

"Hey Shirou, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it Rider?"

Medusa took a deep breath before asking, "Since when are you able to learn to do this? I mean, this is something I have never seen you do before."

"Well...it was something that I had to pick up during one of my travels after the holy grail war was over."

"I see..."

"Yeah. Anyways, let's hurry before the meat starts to rot."

Medusa nodded before de-skinning the meat and bringing it over to the campfire along with Shirou. As they arrived at the campfire, Ritsuka and Mashu were there already.

"Ah! Shirou-san! Medusa-san! You're back already?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. Along with some meat for food," Shirou said.

"Thank you...I'm so hungry right now," Ritsuka groaned as his stomach growled. Shirou laughed as he prepared to cook the raw meat.

Eventually, Shirou was done cooking the meat and shared it with himself, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Medusa. As Medusa tasted Shirou's cooking, she felt a relief growing in her body.

"So, this is what Sakura has been eating every time she comes over to Shirou's house...I can see why there were times she asked for cooking lessons from Shirou..."

"Uh Rider...are you okay?" Shirou asked, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing," Medusa replied as she continued to take a bite of her meat.

Eventually, the meat was gone, and Ritsuka and Mashu decided to turn in for the night while Shirou and Medusa decided to stay up to keep watch.

As Shirou and Medusa were watching the campfire, Medusa decided to ask Shirou a question.

"Shirou, I want to ask you something."

"Sure. What is it?"

Medusa took a deep breath before saying, "What happened to Sakura after I left the holy grail war?"

Shirou gathered his thoughts before saying, "Well...after you went back into the throne of heroes, what happened was that Sakura was targeted by Caster and was used as a catalyst for some sort of ritual to summon the holy grail without ending the war. We did manage to stop her from sacrificing Sakura and summoning the holy grail by stopping her magic circuits. However, she didn't stop there as she had a backup plan which involved sacrificing both Sakura and Tohsaka.

Medusa was shocked. "So, what happened next?"

Shirou sighed. "Gilgamesh appeared and unleashed his Gate of Babylon on Caster, killing her instantly. Due to her death, the temple me, Arturia, Tohsaka, Sakura, and Gilgamesh were in collapsed on us. Luckily, we managed to escape, but so did Gilgamesh."

"I see...and what happened after the holy grail war?"

"After the holy grail war was over, since Sakura couldn't use her magic circuits, she assumed the life of a normal high school girl."

Medusa sighed in relief, now knowing that Sakura was free from the torture she was dealing with in her life. However, she remembered one more thing.

"And what happened...to Shinji...?"

Shirou let out a sigh. "According to Illya, she had berserker kill him."

"I see..." Medusa said.

For a while, silence came between the two.

Until Medusa asked Shirou one more question.

"Hey Shirou, can I ask you one more question?"

"Sure. What was it?"

"Was Sakura happy in the end?"

Shirou gave that question a long thought and said, "Well...after the holy grail war, Sakura seemed a lot happier than before. I thought the death of Shinji was going to make her sad, but turns out, it made her a lot happier. I guess everything went well for Sakura after the holy grail was over and her magic circuits destroyed, because in the end, she was able to live freely and more happily as a normal person."

After hearing Shirou's answer, Medusa's relief for Sakura went up immediately, now knowing that she was free from the curse she was born with. "I see...thanks for telling me Shirou."

"No problem Rider," Shirou said with a smile.

Rider saw the smile and quickly turned around. "Shirou hasn't changed this whole time...he's still the same person Sakura fell in love with...and I hope he doesn't change...for her sake..." she thought.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking in Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business.

When he suddenly felt a tug on his kinomo. As he turned around, he saw a young purple haired girl wearing a black hood with cat ears and an eye design on the front.

"Rider? But wait, she looks younger..." Shirou thought as he looked at her.

"Hey you. Are you Emiya Shirou?" the young girl asked.

"Y-Yes. And who are you?"

"My name is Ana."

"I see. How do you know who I am?"

"My older version of me told me about you."

"I-I see. And what do you want with me Ana?"

"Oh nothing. I just want to observe you. That is all."

"I-I see," Shirou said before he started walking again. As he was walking, Ana continued to follow him everywhere he was going, and it was kind of creeping Shirou out a bit. "Wow, Ana is literally observing me..." he thought.

Eventually, Shirou landed into the cafeteria, preparing himself for his daily duties in Chaldea. As Shirou went into the kitchen, Ana sat on one of the chairs was sat there.

"Hey Ana, do you want something to eat?"

"Hmm...let me think about that..." Ana muttered before she went into her thoughts to think about what to have as a snack for today.

Eventually, she came to a conclusion.

"I would like for some cookies please," Ana said.

"All right then."

Shirou then proceeded to preheat the oven and grabbed the materials to make cookie batter from the fridge and prepared to make cookie batter. As he was making cookie batter, Ana was watching him with interest.

"So, this is the Emiya Shirou my older rider self was talking about earlier...he does seem like a nice guy...although I may be jumping to conclusions a bit too early..."

Meanwhile, Shirou was mixing the cookie batter and was rolling the batter on a non-sticky surface area. Afterwards, he grabbed the cookie cutters and created multiple cookies of various shapes. He then placed the cookies onto a non-sticking baking tray and placed it into the oven.

As Shirou closed the oven's door, he then turned around to see where Ana was. As such, she was at the table, minding her own business.

"Ana, I hope you don't mind, but the cookies will be done in about an hour or so," Shirou said.

"I don't mind," Ana replied with a straight face.

For a moment, silence came between the two.

Since neither of them know what to say to each other.

Eventually, Ana broke the silence by asking Shirou a question.

"Can I ask you something Shirou?"

"Sure. What is it Ana?"

"How is it that the older rider version of me knows you?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "It's kind of a long story. You see, during my time when I was still a human, I got myself involved in the holy grail war of my time by pure chance, and it wasn't pretty."

"How so?"

"Well...I got myself killed early by a lancer. And then when I was revived, I went back to my home...only to see the same lancer that killed me earlier waiting for me...in my own home. At that moment, I had to defend myself and fought against that lancer."

"Really? What happened next?"

"The match ended up with me summoning a servant and lancer retreated."

"I see."

Shirou took a sigh before saying, "A few days later, I came across your rider version along with her master. During that time, we never actually fought against each other and she even gave me a warning."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. However, the next time we met, we had to fight because of her master who happened to be my friend. During the fight, the rider version of you used her noble phantasm to escape."

"I see..." Ana said as she was interested in the fight.

"The day though, it was the last time I ever saw her. You see, the reason why I said that was because during the battle, my servant used her noble phantasm against her, immediately sending her back to the throne of heroes."

Ana was surprised of what the rider version of her did. "Wow."

"Yeah," Shirou said. As he said that, he heard a ding coming from the kitchen. "Ah, the cookies must be done now," he thought. Shirou then put on some oven mitts, opened the door to the oven, and grabbed the cookies out of the tray. Shirou then removed the cookies out of the tray and placed them on a cooling rack. After a few minutes, the cookies cooled down.

"Ana, the cookies are done. You can have them now."

"Okay," Ana said as she proceeded to take a cookie. For a fleeting moment, her face went up into delight as she took a bite of the cookie and ate it really fast.

"You like it?" Shirou asked.

Ana's face went back to her normal stoic face and said, "It's not bad. Another please."

Shirou smiled. "As you wish."

And Ana continued her day eating Shirou's cookies.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Eh? You want me to deliver something to a servant?" Shirou asked Ritsuka.

"Yes, why? Do you have a problem with that?" Ritsuka replied.

"Well no...it's just that...well...never mind," Shirou said. "So, where and whom do I give the item to?"

"It's simple. Head towards room 325 and give the item to Gorgon," Mashu said.

"Gorgon...isn't that one of Rider's alternate selves?" Shirou thought as he received the box from Ritsuka.

"Uh Shirou?" Ritsuka asked.

Shirou snapped out of his daze and said, "Hm? Oh yeah, give the package to Gorgon in room 325 correct?"

"Y-Yeah," Ritsuka said.

"Well then, I'll be off then," Shirou said as he left the room Ritsuka and Mashu were in and went out into Chaldea's hallways to find room 325.

Eventually, he found the room.

"Okay, room 325. Here it is..." Shirou thought as he was at the front door of room 325. "Um, excuse me, is Gorgon-san here right now?"

After a few seconds of silence, a voice returned. "Yes. What do you want?"

"I have a package here from master. He told me to bring it to you."

"Master said so? If that's the case, then bring it over here."

Shirou then went into the room, seeing a woman who looks similar to Medusa with a bit of changes in some areas. "Where do you want me to put the box Gorgon-san?"

"Just put it somewhere where it doesn't annoy me."

"I see." Shirou then looked for a place to put the package where it wouldn't annoy Gorgon. "Is this area good?" Shirou asked as he pointed to an area in the corner of his room.

"Hm? Over there?" Gorgon asked.

"Yeah."

Gorgon gave it a long thought and said, "Sure. That seems fine."

"Really? If that's the case, then I hope you don't mind if I put it over there."

"Sure."

Shirou then placed the box into the corner that Gorgon told him to and was about to leave before Gorgon said something to him.

"By the way, you wouldn't happen to be Emiya Shirou right?"

Shirou turned around and said, "Y-Yeah. Why?"

"I've heard about you from my alternate selves and they said that you're like master."

"R-Really?"

"Yeah. I mean, you do give off the same foolish habits and aura master has."

Shirou didn't know to feel if that was an insult to himself or master, so he just stayed quiet.

"Can I ask you something?" Gorgon asked.

"Uh sure. What is it?" Shirou asked.

"Why do you always cherish other people's lives before your own? From what I heard from my other selves, you always risk your life not only for master, but also for other servants. While I do get why would you do it for master, I don't get why would you do it for other servants, and it puzzles me. Just why?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "It's because I don't want to see the people I care about die in front of me. That it all."

Gorgon was surprised by Shirou's answer. "Just for that? Just for a selfless and selfish reason you will commit yourself to great lengths to protect the ones you love and care for?"

"Yes. It may be selfless and selfish...but still, I will commit myself to those ideals."

"I see..." Gorgon said. "Then let me ask you this Emiya Shirou. What do you think of me? Considering that what my name is and what my lore is, do you see me as a monster?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "I don't see you as a monster. All I see is you and that is all. And I will not treat you like such."

Gorgon was surprised at the answer Shirou just gave her. After all, no one besides master and her other selves have gave her an answer like this.

"Well then, if you don't mind, I'll be leaving then," Shirou said as he proceeds to head towards the front door.

"Sure. Go ahead," Gorgon replied.

Shirou then left the room, leaving Gorgon alone in her room.

_"Emiya Shirou...he doesn't seem that bad..."_


	20. The Saints and The Dragon Witch

_Jeanne D'Arc Alter and Arturia Alter._

_When it comes to these two people, they do not get along with each other._

_In comparison to that, Jeanne D'Arc and Arturia do get along with each other._

_As for Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily and Arturia Lily...no one have seen any interaction between the two..._

_However, wonder what would happen..._

_When Jeanne D'Arc Alter sees something that would give her an idea on how to make Arturia Alter mad..._

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jeanne D'Arc Alter was walking through Chaldea's hallway, minding her own business.

"Tch. Can't believe that woman has got me earlier...one of these days, I'll get my revenge on her...but for now, I'm hungry..." she thought as she was walking towards the cafeteria.

However, as she arrived, she quickly hid herself to not make herself known.

Because in the cafeteria, Jeanne D'Arc Alter saw her enemy, Arturia Alter, with someone next to her.

And that person is Emiya Shirou.

"Well well...what do we have here?" she thought as she was looking at the interaction between Shirou and Arturia Alter with interest.

Meanwhile, Shirou was watching Arturia Alter eating her 10th hamburger. "Wow, when Arturia said that her alter version of herself is a junk food addict, she wasn't kidding. That's her tenth burger today! And she's still continuing, even with the fries as well!"

While Shirou was in his thoughts, Arturia Alter snapped him out of them. "Shirou," she said.

'W-What is it Arturia?" Shirou asked nervously.

"Call me Alter, Shirou. Also, aren't you going to finish your burger?"

Shirou then looked down at his plate of burger and fries and realized that he hadn't even took a bite of it yet. "Oh," he said before taking a bite out of it.

"Well?" Arturia Alter asked.

"It's delicious."

"I see..."

The two ate in complete silence. For a while, nothing extraordinary happened between the two.

However, that's when Arturia Alter did something that she wouldn't even do.

"Shirou."

"What is it Alter?" Shirou asked as he turned around to see her holding a french fry in her hand.

"Eat this," she said.

Shirou was surprised. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. Don't make me repeat myself. Now open wide."

Shirou complied to Arturia Alter's command and opened his mouth wide. He then grabbed the fry with his teeth and took the whole thing into his mouth.

"Well?"

Shirou smiled. "It's delicious."

"Good."

Shirou and Arturia Alter then continued their meal. Evetually, they were done with their meals and Shirou took the dishes to the countertop and cleaned them afterwards. However, Arturia Alter had one more thing to do with Shirou.

"Shirou. Come here," Arturia Alter said.

Shirou complied to Arturia Alter's command and said, "What is it Alter?" as he came over to the table where Arturia Alter was and sat at the chair he was earlier.

It was then that Arturia Alter placed him in a hug and didn't let go, making Shirou blush immediately.

"A-Alter?"

"Shirou. Let me tell you this. You are my and my alternate versions' scabbard and queen. Therefore, by rule, you only belong to us. Not to Ishtar, her rider version, Ereshkigal, Parvati, BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, Kingprotea, Kama, Astraea, Nero and her alternate versions, or anyone else. Only us," she said as she hugged him even tighter.

"Alter..."

"We won't leave you alone..." she muttered.

Shirou sighed as he knew he wasn't going to leave for a while. "Okay..."

Little did they know that Jeanne D'Arc Alter was watching the whole thing...

_"So, the king of knights has a queen huh? Judging from what I saw, she has an affection for the servant over there...if that's the case...then I could use this to my advantage!"_

It was then that Jeanne D'Arc started chuckling as she came up with a plan that its goal would be to make Arturia Alter jealous and mad at the same time.

"Just wait you woman, I'll be sure to make your life a living hell..." she thought with a devilish grin on her face.

_(The next day...)_

"Da Vinci, have you seen Shirou?" Arturia Alter asked.

"Shirou? Hm...let me go check where he is right now..." Da Vinci replied. After a few minutes on the communications center, Da Vinci got her answer. "Ah, Shirou seems to be on a quest with Ritsuka right now."

"I see...who are the party members?"

"Well, there's Ritsuka-kun, Mashu, Shirou, and...Jeanne D'Arc Alter."

The last name Da Vinci said made Arturia Alter tense up immediately. "What?" she said.

"Yeah. Earlier, Ritsuka was going to do a quest earlier along with Shirou and surprisingly, Jeanne D'Arc Alter wanted to join in as well," Da Vinci said.

However, what Da Vinci didn't know was her words influenced Arturia Alter.

Because not only someone else took Shirou away from her, but said person happened to be Jeanne D'Arc Alter.

Whom she hates.

And she instantly knew why Jeanne D'Arc Alter did this out of the blue.

"Jeanne D'Arc Alter...how dare you take Shirou away from me...I swear, once you return, I will incinerate you with Excalibur Morgan..." she thought angrily as she released an aura of bloodlust that was visible.

"Uh...Arturia Alter?" Da Vinci asked while being scared at the same time.

"What?" Arturia Alter asked menacingly.

"Are you okay? You seem to be giving off a tremendous amount of bloodlust here..." Da Vinci muttered.

Arturia Alter noticed this and calmed herself down. "It's nothing," she said. She then soon left the room, leaving Da Vinci alone in the room.

"Just you wait Jeanne D'Arc Alter, you shall pay the price for stealing a king's treasure...and I intend to see the punishment go through..." she thought angrily as she was walking out.

"Oh boy, I should have known that placing Shirou in the same party as Jeanne D'Arc Alter would have this type of effect on her...maybe I shouldn't have done that earlier..." Da Vinci thought.

Da Vinci sighed as she now knew the mess she had unknowingly created. "Shirou, Ritsuka, I pray that you survive when you return..."

_(Meanwhile...)_

"Achoo!"

"Shirou? Are you okay?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Shirou said as he was rubbing his nose. "Jeez, was someone talking about me? Or am I catching a cold?" he thought.

Right now, Shirou along with Ritsuka, Mashu, and Jeanne D'Arc Alter were walking down a meadow, heading towards their destination. While they were walking towards their destination, Jeanne D'Arc Alter was staring at him the whole time.

_"Jeez, what is up with this servant? Since that woman has an affection of him, I thought he would be at least ruthless, but it turns out he's like master! What does what woman see in him? He doesn't seem like an interesting person..."_

Meanwhile, Shirou was starting to notice the stare he was getting from Jeanne D'Arc Alter and it was starting to creep him out. "Uh master, why is the servant over there staring at me?"

"Hm? You mean Jeanne D'Arc Alter?" Ritsuka said.

"If that is her name, then yes."

"Honestly, I'm not so sure either."

"Me too," Mashu said.

However, their conversation was interrupted as Shirou sensed something incoming.

"Master! Enemies incoming!"

"E-Eh?!" Mashu exclaimed.

As such, a bunch of enemy soldiers appeared out of nowhere from the bushes and prepared themselves for battle.

Luckily, so was Ritsuka's group as well.

"Shirou! Mashu! Jeanne D'Arc Alter!"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter grinned. "You don't have to tell me master!" she yelled out as she went ahead with Shirou following her while Mashu stayed behind to protect Ritsuka.

As the fight began, Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter split apart to fight the group of soldiers into two groups in separate locations. As such, Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc was able to reduce the level of danger Ritsuka was in.

Eventually, the battles were over.

"Hah? That's it? Tch, I was expecting something better, but this...they're too weak," Jeanne D'Arc Alter moaned. "Well then, time to check on my subject of interest..."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter then left her side of the battle to see what was going on with Shirou's side of the battle. As she checked the area where Shirou was, what she saw completely shocked her mind.

There was blood everywhere.

Literally.

In Shirou's side of the battle, there were the corpses of dead soldiers covered in blood. Everywhere in the area was a bloodbath as not only there were deep wounds on every soldier, but even the ground was colored red as well. Not only that, but some of the soldiers even had multiple copies of Kanshou and Bakuya embedded in them.

And in the middle of all of that was Shirou himself.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter was appalled that he managed to kill all of them so easily.

In a gruesome, yet beautiful way.

And he didn't even get injured himself.

_"Wow...to think that my subject of interest is able to do all of this...even I have never shed this much damage before...and this beauty...and those swords...I can see why that woman has affections for him..."_

Soon Ritsuka and Mashu followed up afterwards, seeing where Shirou was. Like Jeanne D'Arc Alter, they were shocked at seeing the amount of carnage that was left around Shirou.

"S-Shirou?" Ritsuka asked.

"Hm? What is it master?" Shirou replied.

"A-Are you okay Shirou-san?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah...anyways, shall we move on?"

"E-Eh..." Ritsuka replied.

And the group of four continued to their destination. Eventually night fell, so the group came to a stop and rest. As Ritsuka and Mashu fell asleep, Jeanne D'Arc Alter decided to say something to Shirou.

"You know, you're pretty strong considering what you did to those enemies from earlier," she said.

Shirou didn't say anything.

"Hello, are you listening to me?"

"Hm? Oh, sorry. I was just thinking about something," he replied.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter let out a sigh. "Jeez, this guy can be an airhead sometimes..." she thought.

For a moment, there was silence between the two until Jeanne D'Arc Alter asked him a question.

"Emiya Shirou, what do you think of me?"

"Hm? What do you mean by that?"

"You know. Considering that I'm known as "The Dragon Witch," you would probably think of me as a bad guy right?"

Shirou stayed quiet before saying an answer Jeanne D'Arc Alter did not expect.

"No. I don't think of you as a bad guy."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter was shocked before quickly regaining her composure and said, "How so?"

"Because you were helping master earlier, weren't you? Therefore, I consider you an ally," he said with a smile on his face.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter quickly turned around after hearing those words. "I see..."

"Jeanne D'Arc Alter?"

"It's nothing. Just keep watch of master..."

Shirou then watched over master while Jeanne D'Arc Alter was having thoughts from earlier.

_"Emiya Shirou...you seem to be an interesting fellow..."_

_(A few days later...)_

"And...they're back!" Da Vinci said.

Soon, Shirou, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Jeanne D'Arc rayshifted back into Chaldea's summoning room. As the landed on the alter, Shirou noticed a certain bloodlust aura in the room.

And it was coming from Arturia Alter, who happened to be in the room.

And she wasn't happy right now.

"Shirou."

"W-What is it Alter?"

"Come here, now," she said in an authoritative tone of voice.

Shirou proceeded to go to Arturia Alter's side...before being stopped by Jeanne D'Arc tugging his arm and hugging it, surprising Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci.

On the other hand, Arturia Alter was not amused.

Rather, she was pissed.

"What are you doing, Jeanne D'Arc Alter...?" Arturia Alter asked menancly.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter grinned. "I've taken in interest in him you see, and I want to learn more about him," she said with a smug grin on her face.

"And what gives you the right to learn more about him? He is my queen..."

"Oh? So, he is your queen then? Then I hope you don't mind if I take him out for a bit..."

At that moment, Arturia Alter felt like pulling out Excalibur Morgan. "Don't you dare..."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter then did something she shouldn't have done in front of Arturia Alter...

She started dragging him away from Arturia Alter, instantly making her mad.

"EXCALIBUR MORGAN!" Arturia Alter exclaimed as she was preparing to unleash her noble phantasm while chasing after her.

"Ha! Try and get me now!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter thought as she was dragging Shirou around.

Meanwhile, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci looked at what just happened, and they were in shock.

"D-Did Jeanne D'Arc Alter just..." Ritsuka muttered.

"Y-Yeah. She may have taken Shirou-san away from Arturia Alter..." Mashu muttered as well.

"Oh boy...this is not going to end well..." Da Vinci said.

Meanwhile among the chaos, Shirou had one thought in mind.

_"Why?"_

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was repairing something in one of Chaldea's room, minding his own business as he was fixing a portable heater that was broken earlier.

"Okay, all I have to do is to plug in the wire here, and...there! That should do it. Now this should work..." he thought as he tested the heater to see if it was working. He then turned the switch on and as luck would have it, it was working. "Okay then, now to give this to Da Vinci..." he talked to himself.

As Shirou picked the heater up, he heard a voice call out to him.

"You seem to be having some trouble here. Do you need some help?" the voice called out.

Shirou turned around to see who the voice was, and the voice was from Jeanne D'Arc, who was standing at the doorway.

"You're Jeanne D'Arc Alter...right?" Shirou asked.

Jeanne D'Arc let out a smile. "Sorry, but I'm afraid you had me confused for one of my sisters."

Shirou was confused. "One of your sisters? You mean Jeanne D'Arc Alter?"

"Yes."

Shirou was surprised. "Wow, never have I thought that the original Jeanne D'Arc would refer to her alter as her sister," he thought as he was carrying the fixed heater.

"You sure that you don't need some help?" Jeanne D'Arc asked.

"Yeah. I've used to carrying heavy objects like this before..." he muttered.

"Hm...you seem pretty handy...if you don't mind, would you like to help me with something later?"

Shirou thought about it and said, "Well...I have nothing to do after this...so yeah."

Jeanne D'arc beamed in excitement. "Yes!"

"But first, I need to deliver this to Da Vinci first," Shirou reminded.

'Huh? Oh yeah..."

Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc then left the room and headed towards Da Vinci's workshop. As they were heading towards Da Vinci's workshop, Shirou noticed multiple servants passing by and whispering towards each other. Shirou sighed as he knew that rumors were going to spread later, but he put those thoughts behind him as he focused on carrying the repaired heater to Da Vinci's workshop.

During the walk, Jeanne decided to talk to him.

"By the way, you're Emiya Shirou correct?"

Shirou was stunned that Jeanne D'Arc knew him. "Y-Yes. How did you know?"

"Well...because one of my little sisters..."

_(A few days ago...)_

"You know, you seem a bit different lately little sister."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter groaned. "How so?" she asked.

"Well...you seem to be a bit more lively than usual."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter let out a sigh. "It's nothing I'll tell you."

However, Jeanne D'Arc didn't seem convinced and was staring at her.

"What?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter asked.

Jeanne D'Arc had a smile on her face. "You're interested in a person, aren't you?"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter scoffed. "What? Why would you think that?! It's nothing like that." she said.

However, Jeanne D'Arc was still not convinced. "Oh really?"

"Yeah," she said, unaware of the danger she just placed herself in.

"If that's the case...then why don't you tell me then?" Jeanne asked with a creepy smile on her face.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter gulped as she saw that smile.

Because as soon as that smile appeared, she knew that there was no escape...

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's how I knew about you," Jeanne said.

Shirou gulped as he now knew how Jeanne D'Arc knew him. "Jeez, just what did Jeanne D'Arc do to her altered version...?" he thought as they were still walking.

Eventually, Shirou and Jeanne found themselves at the front door of Da Vinci's workshop.

"Da Vinci! It's me, Shirou! I've brought over the heater you requested for!"

"Really?" Da Vinci in her workshop.

"Yeah!"

After a few seconds of silence, the door to Da Vinci's workshop opened, revealing her. "So, I see that you have fixed the heater huh?"

"Yeah. Anyways, here you go," Shirou said as he gave her the heater.

Da Vinci then took the heater out of Shirou's hands. "Thank you!" she said before the door closed on them.

"Now then, can you help me with something Shirou-san?" Jeanne D'Arc asked.

"Sure. What is it?"

Jeanne took a deep breath before saying, "Just come to my room and you'll see." She then started to head in one direction of Chaldea with Shirou following her.

Eventually, their walk ended up at the front door of Jeanne's room. Then Jeanne went into her room with Shirou following her.

"Okay. So, what seems to be the problem that you're having?" Shirou asked.

"Well...I need your help with...mathematics..." Jeanne said with hints of embarrassment.

Shirou was dumbfounded. "Huh?"

_(A few hours later...)_

"And you need to carry over the two. Do you get it?"

"Yes! I get it now!" Jeanne replied.

Shirou sighed as Jeanne was showing progress on her mathematics. As Shirou kept tutoring her on the math equations, his mind went back to what happened earlier. "Wow, I can't believe that Jeanne D'Arc is actually this bad at mathematics. I mean, I know she was illiterate, but this is crazy. Wonder if her altered counterpart is the same as well..."

"Uh Shirou-san?" Jeanne asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, sorry, just gathering my thoughts, that is all," he said. "Anyways, can you solve the next problems on your own?"

Jeanne nodded and then tried to proceed to try to solve the math equations on her own. After a few minutes, she was done with the equations and handed the worksheet to Shirou. "All done Shirou-san."

"Really? Did you double check?"

"Yes."

"Well, let's see your progress," Shirou said as he scanned her answers to see if she got everything correct. After a few seconds of silence, Shirou was finally done with the answers.

"Well?" Jeanne asked.

Shirou smiled. "All correct."

Jeanne let out a sigh of relief...but it was only temporarily.

"Now then, shall we work on multiplication and division?"

Jeanne gulped at the words "multiplication and division." This was the worst part about mathematics she hated.

And she was not ready for it.

Shirou then had a worksheet of simple multiplication and division equations and gave it to Jeanne. As she looked at it, she was really confused and had her hands to her head.

Shirou noticed her frustration and asked, "Need some help?"

Jeanne sighed. "Yes please..."

Soon, Shirou gave Jeanne a lesson on multiplication and division. During the lesson, Jeanne was in awe at how easily Shirou made a subject that she hated easy.

"Wow...to think that multiplication and division was this easy...Shirou-san does know his stuff..." Jeanne thought.

"And that's how you solve the equation and that's how multiplication and division works. Do you get it now Jeanne?"

"Yes!"

Shirou smiled. "Then I suppose you're ready for the worksheet now?"

Jeanne nodded. Shirou then handed Jeanne the worksheet and Jeanne started working on it. As she was going through the questions, she found it much easier than before.

"These questions...I can do them!" she thought excitedly.

Eventually, she was done with the worksheet like the one from earlier, double checked it, and handed it to Shirou for him to check.

"All done?" he asked.

"Yes."

Shirou then took the paper from Jeanne and gave it a hard look for a few minutes.

"Well?"

Shirou smiled. "You pass."

Jeanne raised her arms in both exhaustion and victory. "Wow! Can't believe that's over. Thank you Shirou-san!"

"You're welcome Jeanne."

"But seriously though, how did you figure as something as difficult as this?" Jeanne asked Shirou in wonder.

However, Shirou was silent for a moment, making Jeanne confused.

"Shirou-san?"

"Uh Jeanne...I hate to break it to you...but this is elementary school level math. Even a kid would be able to understand it easily..." Shirou muttered.

Jeanne was in shock at what Shirou just said. "Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh?!"

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Shirou-san! Shirou-san!"

Shirou turned around to see Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily tugging on his cape. "What is it Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily?"

"Can you help me with something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Can you help me go shopping for something?"

"Sure, but what is it for?"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily gave him a huge smile. "It's for my older versions of me!"

"Older versions of you? You mean Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter?"

"Yes!"

"Is it for a special occasion?" Shirou asked.

"Not quite. I just want to give them something nice. That is all," Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said happily.

"I see..."

"Anways, let's go!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter said as she pointed to one direction of Chaldea before heading off. Shirou then soon followed her.

After minutes of walking, Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily ended in Chaldea's shopping area. "Well, which shop shall we go?" Shirou asked.

"Hmm...how about that one?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily replied as she pointed at a souvenir shop.

"The souvenir shop?"

"Yes!"

"All right then."

Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily then went into the souvenir shop to see if there was anything to buy for Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter. As they went inside, they saw multiple items on display. Some were mugs, others were mystic codes disguised as clothes in various designs, others were sculptures, and many more.

Inside the shop, Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily looked at every corner of the shop and every item to see which one was suited for Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter themselves.

"Hmm...which one would be good for my older versions of me?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily thought as she looked at every item to see which one was good for her, and Shirou was doing the same as well.

As time passed, both Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily thought to leave the shop and find another one.

Until Shirou saw something that caught his eye.

"Hey Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily. How about this?" Shirou asked.

"Hm? What is it?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily replied.

"This," he said as he pointed at an item.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily then turned around to look at the item Shirou was pointing. The item that Shirou was pointing was a snow globe of a miniature Pont du Gard. Inside the snow globe was a miniature Pont du Gard with a tiny landscape on the bottom. The tiny landscape itself was designed to look like a river with some rocks and trees on the side.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily looked at the snow globe in wonder. "It's perfect!" she said.

Shirou smiled. "Should we buy that one then?"

"Yes!"

Shirou then grabbed two of the snow globes and brought it over to the countertop. He then paid for them and placed it in a bag.

"Okay. That should be it."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily smiled. "Great! Now I can show these to my older versions of me!" she said happily.

_(The next day...)_

"Why do you think she called us here?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

"I don't know. Do you think our little sister have something planned for us?" Jeanne D'Arc replied.

"Who knows? I don't care."

At that moment, Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily came into the room smiling with her hands behind her back.

"Hm? What do you have behind your back little sister?" Jeanne D'Arc asked.

"It better not be anything funny, or else I'll cremate you!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

"Relax. What I'm about to give you isn't going to hurt you..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said. Shen then handed them two gift boxes, one for each of them.

Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter were confused by Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily's action.

"What's this little sister?" Jeanne D'Arc asked.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily smiled. "Open it up and you'll see."

Both older Jeannes then opened the gift boxes. As they opened them up, each of them has different feelings for what the gift was.

For Jeanne, she was in marvel at the snow globe itself.

For Jeanne Alter, she didn't seem to be interested in the snow globe and just stared at it.

"Well, do you like it?" Jeanne Alter Santa Lily asked.

Jeanne D'Arc smiled at her little sister. "I like it!"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter just looked at it. "Well...it doesn't suit my tastes. That's all I have to say."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily was in shock at what one of her older versions just said. "You don't like it...? But Shirou-san and I picked this for you..." she muttered.

After hearing that Shirou was involved in this, Jeanne Alter's mood completely changed. "What?"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily sighed. "Guess I'll have to give this back then..."

However, before she could take the snow globe from Jeanne D'Arc Alter's hands, Jeanne D'Arc Alter quickly stood up and was about to leave the room before being stopped by Jeanne.

"Little sister?" Jeanne D'Arc asked.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter huffed and said, "This may not suit my tastes...but I'm not going to let you waste your money throwing this away...so I'm keeping it in my room!"

She then left the room in a hurry.

"Uh...big sis, what just happened?"

Jeanne D'Arc smiled. "Oh nothing..."


	21. Shirou's New Part-Time Job

Shirou took a deep gulp as he looked at the doors in front of him.

Why? Because the doors in front of him was the doorway to Chaldea's casino, Casino Camelot.

And the doors seem to even give off an aura of authority.

"Wow. I still can't believe something like this ever existed..." Shirou thought as his mind went back to what happened earlier...

_(A few hours ago...)_

Shirou was in his room, minding his own business as he was staring at his ceiling.

When suddenly, he heard a voice from the other side of the door.

"Shirou, do you mind if I come in?" the voice asked.

"That voice...Arturia? But which one...?" he thought as he raised himself from the bed he was laying on. "Sure. Just give me a moment," he said.

As he walked towards the door, it opened by itself, revealing Ruler Arturia.

"A-Arturia?" Shirou asked while blushing a bit because of the bunny outfit he was still not getting used to.

"Shirou, can I come in?"

"Y-Yeah."

Shirou then moved out of the way of the doorway to let Ruler Arturia in his room. As the door closed behind them, Shirou then sat on the bed while Ruler Arturia sat next to him.

For a second, there was a moment of awkward silence between the two as they were trying to start a conversation but failed.

Eventually, Ruler Arturia started the conversation.

"Um...Shirou, are you free for the next few days?" Ruler Arturia asked.

"Well...I suppose so...but what for?"

Ruler Arturia took a deep breath before saying, "Can you take Tristan's place for a few days at Casino Camelot?"

Shirou was baffled. "What?"

Ruler Arturia looked a little bit sad and said, "You don't want to?"

Shirou shook his head. "I-It's not that. It's just that...well...can you please explain what's going on?"

"Well, Tristan was supposed to be on duty for being the bartender for tomorrow, but master told him that he needed to go on a quest with him tomorrow."

"I-I see...just one more question. Since when Chaldea had a casino?"

"Oh...for a while now Shirou. And don't worry, it was here before you got here."

"I-I see," Shirou said while relevating in the information he just received. "What the heck?! Are you telling me that Chaldea not only has a mini-mall of shops, but also a Casino?! And it's also named Casino Camelot!? Seriously! How does Chaldea have everything in here?! And it's in Antarctica for the root's sake!"

"Uh Shirou?" Ruler Arturia said, making him snap out of his mind rant.

"Hm? Oh, sorry, just processing some surprising information."

"I can't blame you. This is the first time you ever heard of this after all."

"No kidding. I mean, seriously, a casino in Chaldea? That's something I've never heard of until now," Shirou said with a chuckle.

"Yeah," Ruler Arturia said with a smile. "Anyways, can you do that?" she asked with a bit of pleading in her voice while looking at him.

Shirou smiled back. "Sure Arturia.."

Ruler Arturia smiled back. "Great! Thank you Shirou! Here are the directions to the casino just so that you won't get lost!" she said before she handed him a map of where it is and left in a hurry, leaving Shirou behind.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "I'm still not getting used to Arturia wearing a bunny suit..." he thought.

As Ruler Arturia was in Chaldea's hallways, she came across Tristan along with the rest of the Knights of the Round in a room. "Perfect," she thought as she came towards them.

"Ah, my king, I see that Queen Shirou has listened to my request?"

"Yes, and he has accepted it."

"Phew, now you don't have to worry about someone else making drinks for the patrons," Gawain said.

"But asking Queen Shirou to do this...can Queen Shirou handle serving drinks to the patrons on his first time?" Tristan asked.

"Huh? Are you questioning our king Tristan?" Gawain asked.

"Well no. I'm just worried. That is all."

"Relax Tristan, mother should be able to handle serving a few drinks or so. After all, he's the one responsible for feeding father and her alternate versions! So, he's got this in the bag!" Mordred jokingly said with some laughter on the side.

Ruler Arturia then bonked Mordred on the head. "Be quiet Mordred."

"Ow..." she muttered while holding her head.

Lancelot sighed. "Anyways, you don't have to worry about anyone screwing up your job while you're gone Tristan."

"Yeah. So, you can go ahead with Master on the quest without any worries or so," Bedivere said reassuringly.

"See! Since everyone here has their trust placed in Queen Shirou, it means he can handle this job!" Gareth said.

After a moment of thinking, Tristan complied. "Well if you all trust him, then I shall too."

Ruler Arturia smiled. "Good."

_(Back to the present...)_

_"Well, here's the doorway to Casino Camelot...still though, even though Arturia told me that it's been here for quite a while, I'm still surprised that something like this exists in Chaldea...might need to ask master what else lies in Chaldea later so I won't be surprised later in the future..."_

Shirou took a deep breath before resolving himself. "Well, here goes nothing..." he thought as he opened the doors.

As he opened the doors, he was appalled by how grand and lavish the interior was. The lobby was huge and seemingly modeled after a Roman temple or palace. The floor was made of pristine marble and granite while the walls were similarly constructed but had incredibly detailed mosaics and frescoes. The ceiling was decorated in much the same way as the walls, and from it hung chandeliers of gold and crystal, casting a bright glow across the entire room.

There were two sets of stars at either side of the room, leading up to a veranda up above from which anyone might be able to oversee the entire lobby, and Shirou could spy a few other servants already up there while holding glasses of various drinks in their hands. Set against the back wall was a long desk that appeared to be the reception desk, the entire thing in lavish wood, and over there Shirou saw Bedivere in his work wearing a tuxedo.

In conclusion, the casino showed off incredible wealth in its decorations and construction.

"Wow...this is quite extravagant...just how is Chaldea able to fit all of that in here...?" Shirou thought as he walked into the casino.

That was when he heard a voice calling out to him.

"Shirou!"

Shirou turned around to see where the voice came from. The voice came from Ruler Arturia as she was coming over to Shirou wearing her usual outfit.

"Arturia," Shirou said.

"Shirou, I'm glad that you found the place. Anyways, would you follow me to the changing room?"

"Sure." Shirou then followed Lancelot to the dressing room. As he got there, there were multiple stalls and racks of clothes hanging around. "So...what are we doing here?" he asked.

Ruler Arturia then came out with measuring tape and said, "I'm going to measure you to see which suit size fits you better. Now hold still."

Shirou stood still as Ruler Arturia measured his body size. After a few seconds, Ruler Arturia said, "Okay, I think we have a suit that fits your size. Just give me a moment to find it." She then went to the rack of clothes and checked to see which one matches Shirou's size. After a few seconds of checking, she found one. "Perfect!" she exclaimed as he took it from the rack. "Shirou, wear this," she said while holding a suit and fake bunny ears.

Shirou looked at the suit and fake bunny ears and said, "I have to wear this while working?"

"Yes."

"For the next few days?"

"Yes."

"Okay, just let me go into the changing room for a moment," he said as he grabbed the suit before heading into the changing room. After a few minutes, Shirou came out wearing a black tuxedo with a white dress shirt, black leather shoes, a black butterfly bow tie, and fake black bunny ears. "How do I look?"

Ruler Arturia smiled. "You look amazing Shirou."

"Why thank you Arturia. Now, can you show me where the bar is?" Shirou asked.

"Yes," Ruler Arturia said as she and Shirou left the dressing room. As they left the dressing room, Shirou noticed the number of servants playing on the slot machines and gambling on the tables were a lot. "Wow...the number of servants playing in the casino...guess some servants think of this as their personal heaven..."

Eventually, Shirou and Ruler Arturia arrived at the bar. As they arrived, Ruler Arturia gave Shirou instructions on how to do Tristan's job.

"Okay, since you're taking over Tristan's job for a few days, let me give you the basics for how it works. You just have to make drinks for the patrons and that's it. If you don't know what the recipes for some drinks, check the bottom of the cabinet over there," he said as he pointed to a corner cabinet which included recipes for drinks. "Got it?"

"Yeah. I can handle this," Shirou replied.

"Good. Now if you will excuse me, I need to go back to dealing the cards at my table," Ruler Arturia said before she left, leaving Shirou alone at the bar.

"All right, since I'm at a bar...might as well start to wash the glasses..." he thought as he prepared to grab the glasses and started washing the glasses. However, before he could do so, a certain servant came up to him.

"Huh. I would have never expected to see you here kid," a certain voice said.

Shirou turned around to see who it was. "Cu?" he said.

"Yup. It's me kid. What? Never expected to see me here?" he said with a grin on his face.

"Yeah. I never knew that you would enjoy gambling," Shirou replied.

"Nah. I'm only here for the great booze that the bar here offers."

"Figures..." Shirou thought as he let out a sigh.

"Anyways, I don't see the regular bartender around. Is he gone for today?"

"Yeah. Master needed him for a few days or so."

"Figures...anyways kid, can you make my usual?"

"And what would be your usual here?

Lancer Cu smiled. "An Irish Coffee...with heavy loads of whiskey in it."

Shirou sighed. "Man, Cu really loves his liquor...especially when it comes to Irish drinks..." he thought. "As you wish."

Shirou then procced to grab a mug from the counter and filled it with hot water. He then emptied it and added hot coffee up until 3/4th of the cup was filled. He then grabbed some brown sugar, stirred it until it dissolved, and blended it with heavy loads of whiskey in it. Finally, he topped it off with a spoon of whipped cream and doused it on top of it. He then placed the mug on a small plate and gave it to Lancer Cu.

"Here is your Irish Coffee sir," Shirou said.

"So, it appears that you know how to make drinks kid...good. But...how's the taste...?" Lancer Cu thought as he sniffed it like a hellhound first before taking a sip of the Irish Coffee.

However, as he took a sip of it, he was overwhelmed by how good the flavor was, even by his standards. "What the hell?! This tastes damn great! The kid sure knows his drinks!" he thought as he downed the whole thing.

After a few seconds of downing the whole mug, he said, "Kid...you sure know how to make a damn good drink..." with a grin on his face.

"So..."

"Yes. You're good here," Cu said as he grabbed some QP. "Here. Keep the change. Consider it your reward for satisfying me."

He then left the bar stand, leaving Shirou alone.

"Wow...Cu can be quite serious when it comes to alcohol...apparently..." Shirou thought as he was appalled from the behavior Cu just displayed from drinking Irish Coffee.

As time passed, more patrons came over to the bar Shirou was working at and he was working with multiple orders from multiple patrons.

And he enjoyed it.

After what seems like an eternity of serving drinks to other patrons, Shirou felt like he could take a small break and was cleaning up some of the glasses from the earlier rush.

"You know, you seem to be having fun here," a voice said.

Shirou turned around to see where the voice came from. It was Merlin, who happened to be wearing a tuxedo.

"Merlin," Shirou stated.

"Hi there Shirou. How's Tristan's job?" Merlin asked with a smile on his face.

"Well...it's quite interesting. I never knew that Tristan was a bartender."

"Hey. Me neither...well, until now that is."

"Yeah. Speaking of which, where is Arturia?"

"Hm? Oh, she's probably dealing cards at her table right now."

"And the rest of the knights?"

"Hm...Lancelot and Gawain seems to be at the tables being card dealers, Mordred is going around to make sure that there are no perverts around the casino, Bedivere seems to be responsible for the reception at the desk, and Gareth is probably entertaining the guests."

"I see. And you?"

"Me? I'm just playing around," Merlin said with a smile.

"Figures..." Shirou thought.

"Anyways, I never knew you're this good at being a bartender. Did you have experience with this before?" Merlin asked.

"Kind of. I used to have a part time job at a bar before," Shirou replied.

"I see. Anyways, keep up the good work Shirou!" Merlin said in a joyful tone while leaving the bar.

Shirou sighed at what Merlin just said. "Sometimes, I will never get Merlin..." he muttered as he headed back to work...

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the next few days passed on, Shirou had to add one more thing to do in his daily routine.

And that was taking care of Tristan's shift in Casino Camelot.

While he didn't mind taking up Tristan's job, there was a slight factor he didn't encounter for.

And that was how much interaction the job had.

For example, one time when he was on the job, he saw chatting with Ishtar who happened to be at the Casino just to earn more QP and jewels. It was then that during the chat that Astraea came in...and asked Shirou to be her butler after his job was over, making Ishtar mad and prompting a fight between the two.

It was when that Ruler Arturia came in to stop the fight. While Shirou was glad that Ruler Arturia came in to stop the fight before it could even get any worse, it didn't make things even easier when Ruler Arturia was holding onto Shirou's arm, prompting jealously from both Ishtar and Astraea.

Eventually, both Ishtar and Astraea left the premises of the casino, not before Astraea muttering softly, "Wonder Sherou would notice me if I were wearing a bunny suit..." making Ishtar yell at Astraea immediately.

Shirou thought if he heard Astraea say that, but quickly dismissed that as he quickly went back to work.

Another thing that he did not expect was the number of patrons that kept coming to the bar afterwards. Apparently, Cu told several of the patrons that Shirou's bartending skills were good which prompted a flow of customers to the bar, and it increased Shirou's workload by a ton.

Not that he didn't mind, but it was starting to influence Shirou's body.

And after a few days of covering Tristan's job, today was the day Tristan was finally coming back.

"Well, from what I heard from Da Vinci, Tristan is apparently coming back today...well that's great." Shirou thought as he was cleaning up some glasses while the rest of the knights were closing for today. As Shirou cleaned the last glass, he then placed it on the counter top and closed the bar for today. He then walked out of the bar while trying to find a place to rest.

As luck would have it, there was a bench he could take a nap on. He then laid down on the bench.

"Man, I would have never expected today to be this tiring...but at least today is the last...day..." Shirou thought before he fell asleep.

However, as he was sleeping on the bench he was on, he didn't notice that he attracted Ruler Arturia, Mordred, Gawain, Lancelot, Bedivere, Gareth, and Merlin.

And they were looking at him.

"Shirou...you must have overworked yourself again...maybe it was a bad idea asking you to do Tristan's job..." Ruler Arturia said with a sigh as she saw Shirou sleeping.

"Wow...I've never seen mother this exhausted before..." Mordred said.

"Do you think we may have put a huge burden on our queen?" Gawain asked.

"I think so..." Lancelot said as he was worried. "Oh, what have we done..."

"R-Relax you guys. He's just taking a nap," Bedivere said. "There's nothing wrong with that..."

"But still..." Gareth said.

"It's just as Bedivere said. Us servants can take a break occasionally too. Shirou's just doing a part of his duty too."

"You do have a point Merlin. But still though..." Gawain said as he continued to look at Shirou.

Mordred sighed. "Anyways, the casino is closing up soon, so what are we going to do?"

For a moment, there was silence as everyone was trying to figure what to do with Shirou. They couldn't just leave him in the casino after all.

Eventually, Ruler Arturia broke the silence.

"I'll be carrying him to his room," she said.

"You will my liege?" Lancelot asked.

"Yes. After all, isn't it a king's duty to take care of the queen?" Ruler Arturia said.

Merlin was giggling at what Ruler Arturia said. "Sure is. Anyways, I hope that you will "take care" of him...if you know what I mean..." he said in a teasing tone.

Ruler Arturia blushed at Merlin's statement. "A-Anyways, just leave Shirou to me. The rest of you move on ahead and wait for me outside."

"As you wish. Now come on you guys. Let's go," Gawain said he and the rest of the knights were heading towards the entrance.

"Hey brother, what does Merlin mean by "take care" of him?" Gareth asked.

Gawain inwardly groaned. "That is something I will tell you later..." he replied.

Ruler Arturia then picked up Shirou and carried him bridal style. She then left the casino, allowing the knights to lock up the doors to the casino. Ruler Arturia, the Knights of the Round, and Merlin went their separate ways as Ruler Arturia was carrying Shirou to his room bridal style. As they arrived at Shirou's room, Ruler Arturia laid him down on his bed and covered him with his bed sheets.

As Ruler Arturia looked at Shirou sleeping, she thought, "Shirou looks so peaceful when he's asleep...speaking of which, it's already this late and I am getting tired..."

Ruler Arturia continued to look at Shirou sleeping. Eventually, she got tired and she then went under the bed covers and gave Shirou a hug, pressing her breasts and one of her arms against his arm while covering his chest with her other arm and her head on his shoulder.

"This feels nice..." she thought as she fell asleep as well with a blush and a smile on her face.

_(The next day...)_

"Onii-chan! It's morning already! Wake up!" Illya yelled from the other side of his room.

There was no answer from the room.

"Onii-chan! I'm coming in if you don't mind!" she exclaimed as she entered Shirou's room. As she entered the room, she noticed a giant human-sized lump on the bed. She assumed it was Shirou and proceeded to pull the covers off.

"Onii-chan! Wake up!" she exclaimed as she pulled the covers off.

However, when she pulled the covers off, she received a surprise she didn't expect.

And that surprise was in the form of Shirou and Ruler Arturia sleeping together.

It was at that moment that Illya's mind exploded and she let out a scream, waking up Shirou.

"Wha-Illya?!" Shirou said as he heard the scream.

"Onii-chan...what...what...WHAT WERE YOU DOING WITH THAT WOMAN?!" she exclaimed as she was getting angry.

Shirou was confused...until he heard a moan next to him.

"Mnnnnh...Shirou? What's going on?" Ruler Arturia moaned as she was waking up.

"W-What?! How did I-wait! Illya! It's a misunderstanding okay?! Calm down and let's just-" Shirou explained as he tried to calm Illya down.

Sadly, Illya was blinded by too much rage to calm down.

"YOU...YOU...YOU DIRTY PERVERT!" Illya exclaimed.

And she proceeded to give him a huge slap.

"WHY?!" Shirou exclaimed in pain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update: 7/16/20: revised an area of the chapter.


	22. Revenge Match

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: I'm not good with fighting scenes, so this chapter may be a bit rough and some feedback would be nice. May be a bit OOC too. Sorry.

"997...998...999...1000!" Shirou exclaimed as he was on his last sword swing. He then walked over to one of the benches in the room, grabbed a small towel he picked up earlier, and began to wipe the sweat off his face. "Whew, guess I worked up quite a sweat," Shirou thought.

Right now, Shirou was in Chaldea's training room practicing his swordsmanship along with his tracing and projection magecraft. After a few minutes of cleaning himself up, he then continued to work on his swordsmanship.

It was then that a certain blue haired lancer came into the room...

"Hey kid!" a voice said.

Shirou turned around to see Cu in his usual blue tights and carrying Gae Bolg in his arms. "Cu..."

"So, you're training here?" he asked.

"Yeah. And you?" Shirou replied.

"Same as well. And if anything, I would rather train here than train with my teacher..." Cu muttered.

"Hm? Did you say something?"

"Ah. It's something you don't need to know about."

Shirou shrugged off from what Cu just said and continued practicing his swordsmanship. As he kept swinging his sword, Cu noticed his swordsmanship swings and thought, "Wow. The kid has improved ever since the last time I fought him. Before, he wasn't even able to swing even a pipe properly, and now, he's able to actually use a sword like a real swordsman..."

And this gave Cu a certain idea.

He then came over to Shirou who was busy with swinging his sword around and said, "Hey kid, spar with me now."

Shirou stopped his training regime for a moment and said, "What?"

"You heard me. Spar with me now," Cu repeated.

"And why?"

"Because I said so. Now get yourself ready."

Shirou sighed as he knows that he can't accept "no" as answer, so he said, "All right. Let's do it in the arena over there."

Cu smiled. "Good," he said as he was twirling his spear in excitement.

Both Shirou and Cu then left the center of the training area and went to the arena inside the room. Shirou set himself up in a defensive position holding his sword. On the other side of the training area, Cu set himself up in a forward stance as his legs were parted and he held on to Gae Bolg.

"Ready?"

"As I'll ever be..."

"Well then...don't mind if I attack first!" Cu yelled out as he lunged forward to where Shirou was. Cu then raised his spear upwards and attacked Shirou, but Shirou blocked his spear's strike with his katana. He then kicked Cu backwards and proceeded to head forward while Cu was recovering from Shirou's kick. Shirou then tried to slash Cu, but Cu blocked his strike with his spear.

Cu then set some distance between him and Shirou by pushing him backwards. Cu then proceed to strike at Shirou, but Shirou blocked his strike with a strike of his own. They then unleashed a fury of slashes against each other and then went into a defensive position after their dance of strikes. "Man, the kid definitely has improved since the last time I fought him...wonder if this is all he can do..." Cu thought.

After a few minutes of doing nothing but staying in their defensive positions, Cu then said something to Shirou.

"You know, you've improved than the last time I saw you," Cu said.

"I'll take that as a complement then," Shirou replied.

"But...is that all you got? Just that sword in your hand? Not that I'm complaining or anything. I'm just wondering..."

"That if I have anything up on my sleeve?" Shirou finished.

Cu flashed a toothy grin. "Yup."

Shirou sighed. "Well...if you say so..."

Shirou then sheathed hit katana and raised his hands. At first, Cu was confused, wondering what was Shirou up to.

Then Shirou's next words completely gave him a surprise.

**"Trace On."**

In an instant, Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in Shirou's hands, surprising Cu.

And he was assuming EMIYA's pose as well.

_"What the hell?! Aren't those weapons the ones Archer uses?! How the hell did the kid was able to obtain them?! What's more, even he's in the same posture as him!"_

"Hey Cu, what's wrong?" Shirou said, snapping Cu out of his thoughts.

"Kid...just where did you get those swords?" Cu asked.

"Let's just say...Archer gave me advice on how to beat an enemy..."

"I see..." Cu muttered. "Well then...this could be interesting..." he thought before he decided to lunge himself at Shirou.

However, instead of defending like before, Shirou used Archer's tactics and baited Cu into attacking him by letting his guard down. Cu then saw an opening and attacked him, but Shirou saw his attack, turned around swiftly with a twist, and slashed him in the abdomen. Cu gathered all his skills and reflexes to dodge Shirou's attack. Luckily the wound wasn't deep.

"What the hell?! Not only the kid has Archer's weapons and stance, but he also has his technique?! Seriously, are they related or something?!" Cu thought as he was trying to process what just happened.

After a few seconds, Cu asked, "Hey kid, you intentionally let that opening, didn't you?"

Shirou responded with a smile, annoying Cu even further.

_"Great! Even he acts similar to him!"_

However, at the time, this fight was actually intriguing him even further.

_"But...considering how he was the last time I saw him...he's definitely improved...and this is actually fun!"_

Cu let out a toothy grin.

"Hey kid, you're actually making this mock battle a lot fun than I ever expected."

"Why thank you. And I suppose you want to continue?" Shirou asked while assuming EMIYA's signature pose once again.

Cu smirked. "Well I wish I could...but it feels like we'll have to continue this another time..." he said as he relaxed a bit.

Shirou was confused. However, at that moment, three other servants came into the training room.

"Hey Lancer me! What are you up to this time?"

"Tch...this is a pain in the ass..."

"Hey older me! What's going on!"

Shirou and Cu stopped their fight and looked around to see where the voices came from. As the turned around, they saw three figures coming from the doorway.

And those figures were Caster Cu and Berserker Cu.

"Uh...Cu...by any chance..."

"Yes kid. Over there is my caster, proto, and berserker version of myself."

"I see...wait, caster version of you? proto as well?" Shirou asked as he was surprised.

"Yeah. I know, I was surprised as well that there's a Caster version of me as well, let alone a Proto version of me as well. And for the record, the Proto version of me is based on me when I was young."

"Wow...no offense, but I'm think a caster class doesn't fit you..."

"Hey man, even I'm not so sure about this either," Caster Cu said as he was walking towards where Shirou and Lancer Cu were. "So, who's the kid?"

"Yeah. Never seen this kid before," Berserker Cu said.

"Me neither," Proto Cu said.

Shirou twitched a little. "Great, even the caster and berserker versions calls me that too..." he thought.

"Oh yeah. This is the kid I was talking about. Remember? The one that I failed to kill three times?" Cu said to his alternate versions.

"Is that so..." Caster Cu said as he glanced at Shirou. "He doesn't seem to be that much to me..."

"Yeah...he looks a bit weak to me," Berserker Cu said.

"Now, now, don't judge a book by its cover. Remember the lessons Shishou would give us?" Proto Cu said.

Both Lancer, Caster, and Berserker Cu covered their heads with their hands in response to Proto Cu's words. "Don't...remind me...of them..." Caster Cu said nervously.

"Yeah...I don't want to experience that again..." Berserker Cu nervously.

"Me neither..." Lancer Cu said.

Shirou looked at the scene in surprise. "Just what kind of teacher did Cu and his alternate versions had to make them like this?"

"Anyways, what brought you two here?" Lancer Cu asked.

"For training obviously," Caster and Proto Cu replied.

"And judging by the looks of things...you seem to be getting your ass kicked by the kid," Berserker Cu said.

Lancer Cu scoffed and got a little annoyed. "Well try saying that after you fight against him."

"And why?"

"Because he seems awfully similar to Archer. Too similar I might say."

Both Caster and Berserker Cu was surprised by his statement. "Really?" they asked while Proto Cu didn't know what was going on.

"Yeah. In fact, why don't you three of you go against him?"

"Wait! Don't I get to have a say in this?" Shirou asked.

"No," they all said in unison.

"Great. This is not how I want this day to go...wish Arturia was here..." Shirou thought as he sulked in defeat.

"All right. Who wants to go first?" Lancer Cu asked.

Proto Cu smirked. "I call dibs first. I need a workout after all," he said as he got onto the arena.

"Damn it. Well, I call second then. You okay with this Berserker me?" Caster Cu said.

Berserker Cu let out a moan. "As long as I get to fight him, I don't care about the order."

"All right then, let the match begin!" Lancer Cu said as he got off the arena.

In an instant, Proto Cu immediately lunged at Shirou with Gae Bolg in his hands, pulling off a trust. Shirou immediately dodged that with his body turning to the side and struck him on the side.

"Tch!" Proto Cu said as he brought some distance between him and Shirou. Shirou lunges at him with his swords, ready to strike him. However, he intercepted the strike with one end of his spear and sees an opening. He then takes advantage of the short distance between him and Shirou to attack with the other end of the spear.

However, that opening was a trap.

Shirou blocked the spear and deflected it, hoping to land a hit on Proto Cu's shoulder. However, Proto Cu moved his body and brought some distance between him and Shirou.

Proto Cu was puzzled. He has never fought against this type of fighting style before, and it was confusing him. "What kind of fighting style was that? I'm not sure if this guy is a swordsman or a kid, but the fighting style he uses is suicidal. And yet, I haven't been able to hit him," he thought as positioned himself to his usual stance.

After Shirou positioned himself in his usual stance as well, Proto Cu asked Shirou a question.

"Hey kid. Who taught you that fighting style?"

"And why do you want to know?" Shirou replied.

"No reason."

Shirou sighed before saying his answer. "Let's just say...I self-taught it myself."

"I see..." Proto Cu said. "Anyways, here I come!"

In a moment, Proto Cu was on the offense in a flash, forcing Shirou to block his attacks as Proto Cu kept assaulting him in a rush.

However, this is where

Meanwhile, Lancer Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu were watching the fight with interest.

"So that's the kid you failed to kill three times Lancer me?" Caster Cu asked.

"Yup," Lancer Cu replied.

"Was he always this strong when you met him?" Berserker Cu asked.

Lancer Cu let out a chuckle. "Nope."

Both his Caster and Berserker counterparts looked at him in confusion. "What?" they said in unison.

"Yeah. In fact, the first time I failed to kill him, I stabbed him in the heart with Gae Bolg. There was even blood there as well. However, some girl who happened to be nearby revived him. The second time I tried to kill him, he at least put up a fight or so."

"And what happened?"

Lancer Cu sighed. "He apparently summoned a servant, interrupting the whole thing."

"Eh..."

"Yeah. Anyways, the third time I tried to kill him, it was a complete repeat of the first time I killed him. And that was the last time I ever saw him..."

Both Caster and Berserker Cu were surprised at Lancer's story.

"But still though...the fact that the kid I tried to kill three times before grew up to be something like this...it just baffles me..." Lancer Cu said as he was watching the fight.

Meanwhile at the fight, Proto Cu was having trouble trying to keep up with Shirou's unorthodox fighting style. He has tried to land a hit on him but has failed to do so. Meanwhile, Shirou has landed a few hits on him.

"Jeez. It's already this long in the match, and yet I can't even get a hit on him...just what kind of person is this saber-class servant is?" Proto Cu thought.

"Man, this fight is taking a bit too long. I may need to finish this..." Shirou thought.

In an instant, both servants decided to finish the fight and positioned themselves in an offensive stance.

"Well, it seems like both of us have the same idea," Proto Cu said.

"It seems so," Shirou replied.

Proto Cu grinned. "Don't hold back!"

"Likewise," Shirou replied.

In an instant, Proto Cu immediately lunged at Shirou in a flash, hoping to hit him with him even noticing.

However, Shirou immediately saw that coming.

At the last moment before the spear was so close to touching his body, Shirou span his body around so that he would be behind Proto Cu and struck him down in the back with Kanshou and Bakuya. Proto Cu then fell to the arena floor from the impact of the attack.

"See? Told you?" Lancer Cu said.

"Wow. This may be interesting..." Caster Cu said.

Berserker Cu didn't say anything.

At the arena, Proto Cu was trying to get up after being hit from Shirou's attack.

"You okay over there?" Shirou asked as he lended a hand to Proto Cu.

"Yeah...I'll be fine...but thanks for asking. Great fight by the way," Proto Cu said as he grabbed Shirou's hand to get up from the ground. As he was getting off the arena, he said a piece of advice to his Caster Counterpart.

"Be careful of him. This guy's fighting style is suicidal apparently."

Caster Cu grinned. "I'll take that in mind," he said as he was getting onto the arena. As he got onto the arena, he looked at Shirou and said, "Ready?"

"Yeah."

"Well then...don't mind if I do!"

Instantly, Caster Cu spanned his staff around and stabbed the ground with it, creating a spell of fire that flew straight at Shirou. Shirou quickly dodged it and lunged himself at Caster Cu while at the same time projecting multiple copies of Kanshou and Bakuya at him and started throwing them at him.

"What the heck?! My lancer version was right! This kid is like Archer! In fact, the resemblance between the two is uncanny for the most part!" Caster Cu thought as he spun his staff around to block the multiple swords aiming at him. Shirou then used that as an opportunity and tried to disarm Caster Cu, but Caster Cu was fast, jumped backwards, and placed his hand on the ground to create a rune.

The rune then created a wall of flame that went straight after Shirou. Shirou dodged the wall of flame, created more copies of Kanshou and Bakuya, and threw it at Caster Cu again.

However, this is where Caster Cu had enough of Shirou's constant spamming of Kanshou and Bakuya copies and placed his hand onto the ground.

During that moment, he created a giant rune.

"Grand Scale!" he yelled out.

At that moment the copies of Kanshou and Bakuya disappeared before they could touch Caster Cu. And not only that, but the giant rune hasn't disappeared.

"Sorry kid, but this rune completely disables any long-range attacks. It won't do any good to shoot each other at long range distances. So, let's go all out and do this the old-fashioned way!" Caster Cu said as he twirled his staff around and went into Lancer Cu's stance.

Shirou let out a chuckle as he observed the rune. "Judging from the earlier attacks...and this giant rune...I take it you fought against Archer before?"

Caster Cu let out a grin. "Yup. And unlike my Lancer version over there, I actually won."

Lancer Cu scowled a bit. "At least you didn't have a cowardly master..." he muttered.

Shirou sighed. "Well then, if Archer's tactics aren't going to work on him, then I'll have to change styles then..." he thought.

Shirou then unsheathed his katana from the scabbard and positioned himself into a defensive position.

After a few seconds of silence, Caster Cu lunged himself at Shirou as he set if staff on fire. Caster Cu then swung his burning staff at Shirou while Shirou kept countering it with his katana.

Both servants were swinging their weapons at each other, neither of them backing down.

"I got to admit...this kid's actually pretty good..."

"Jeez. Despite being a Caster-class servant, he still acts like his Lancer counterpart..."

Eventually, both Shirou and Caster Cu decided to separate themselves from one another.

"You want to know something kid?"

"What?"

Caster Cu smiled. "You're actually making this a lot fun than I hoped for."

"Well thank you."

"Yeah. To be honest, I was hoping to continue this a bit longer, but I have a feeling that my Berserker counterpart would probably barge in, so I'm going to end this once and for all," Caster Cu said as he positioned himself for a final attack.

Shirou smirked. "For once, I agree," he said as he positioned himself for a final attack as well.

After a few seconds of silence, both servants proceeded to lunge at each other with their weapons in their hands, swinging at each other.

In a flash, their weapons met each other and within that moment, they crossed paths with their weapons drawn.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then suddenly, Caster Cu started laughing.

"Hahahahahahaha! Kid, you sure are interesting! Never have I ever fought a fight like this!" he said with laughter.

"Yeah...and you still fight like your Lancer counterpart...with a few differences."

Caster Cu chucked at Shirou's statement. "I'm not sure to either be annoyed or angry at what you just said kid, but I don't care right now! Because this fight was satisfying! Anyways, I'm going to be leaving for now, so have fun with my Berserker counterpart!" he said as he left the arena, allowing Berserker Cu to have his fun.

"Guess it's my turn huh?" Berserker Cu said as he went up to the arena and then positioned himself in Lancer Cu's stance.

Meanwhile, Shirou did the same and positioned himself in a defensive stance. "Ready?" he said.

"As I'll ever be..." he said.

After a few seconds of silence, Shirou and Berserker Cu charged at each other. Berserker Cu thrusted his spear at Shirou in which Shirou dodged and tried to slash him. However, Berserker Cu was too fast for that and countered Shirou's strike.

As Shirou and Berserker Cu were dodging and exchanging strikes, Shirou noticed that unlike his Lancer and Caster counterparts, Berserker Cu didn't show any emotion in his fighting style. "Well this is weird. I haven't seen this Cu show any emotion in this fight, unlike his counterparts..." he thought as he blocked an attack from his spear.

"Hey kid, don't get distracted on small things."

"Eh?" Shirou said before he got hit by Cu's tail. The impact temporarily brought him down as he fell to the ground before getting up quickly. "Oh yeah. He has that tail of his. Speaking of which, how did know about what was going on in my head?" he thought.

Shirou then quickly redirected his mind towards the fight he was in and assumed in an offensive position. Meanwhile, Berserker Cu did the same.

"This kid...although he may be a bit soft in some areas, he's actually not that bad. I can see why my Lancer and Caster counterparts would have some fun fighting him earlier..." Berserker Cu thought as he lunged forwards at Shirou while Shirou did the same.

As the two clashed each other with their weapons, Cu then began to start an onslaught of strikes as he kept swinging at Shirou with his spear. However, Shirou countered his swings with his own and the two were striking at each other.

Eventually, the two got tired of this and jumped backwards towards opposite sides of the arena.

For a moment, there was silence between the two as they were in defensive positions, waiting to either strike or the opponent strike first.

"You know...you're not half bad," Berserker Cu said.

"Why thank you," Shirou replied.

"But you know, I'm getting bored of that sword of yours. I mean come on, do what you did to my Caster counterpart from earlier, well...before he unleashed that rune."

"Well...if you say so..." Shirou said.

As he raised his hands and was performing his magecraft, he thought of a weapon that would surprise Berserker Cu and his counterparts.

"Trace on."

As he said his aria, a weapon appeared in his hands.

And it surprised Berserker Cu and his counterparts.

It was Gae Bolg.

At that moment, Lancer Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu were shocked to see Gae Bolg in Shirou's hands.

After all, it was a weapon handed to them by Scathach, the queen of the land of shadows.

And Shirou just replicated it easily.

Not only that, but he also assumed into the same pose as Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu were.

"What the hell?! That's Gae Bolg! How the hell did the kid manage to obtain it?! What's more, he's even copying my fighting stance as well! He's ripping me off!"

"Was that Gae Bolg?! Impossible! How can he summon it so easily?! And out of nowhere netherless! What's more, how did he acquire it?!"

"You got to be kidding me! Not only he can copy swords, but he can copy spears as well?! Jeez, this kid is full of surprises. Speaking of which, I need to ask him for a copy of Gae Bolg later..."

"What the hell...did the kid just replicate Gae Bolg? Jeez...this kid is crazy. Speaking of which, I should not tell shishou about this kid...or else he'll kill him...or even worse..."

"Well, what's wrong?" Shirou asked, snapping them out of their thoughts.

"Hey kid...did you project that?" Berserker Cu asked.

"Yeah. Why? You're mad about it?"

"Well yeah...but honestly...I don't care...as long as the fight's good."

"I see...well then...here I come," Shirou said as he lunged himself at Berserker Cu with great speed. As so, Cu blocked his first strike. However, what happened next completely caught Berserker Cu by surprise.

Shirou was copying his moves in the encounter. Every strike Shirou used on him was a complete copy of what Cu would do, nether less which version. Each strike, parry, guard, thrust, anything was a complete copy of what each Cu would do.

During this exchange of blows and strikes, Berserker Cu was feeling something he had never felt in a while.

The joy of fighting someone.

And for once, Berserker Cu was grinning.

"This fight...isn't so bad after all. Rather...I'm actually enjoying this!" Berserker Cu thought as he was defending against Shirou's moves.

Eventually, Berserker Cu had enough of Shirou's onslaught of strikes and kicked him to get some distance.

After a few seconds of silence from the two, Berserker Cu said something to Shirou.

"Kid. You're actually making this a lot fun than what I expected."

"Thank you. Although I hope I didn't make you and your counterparts mad that I copied your fighting style."

"Relax. I'm used to it considering that I have multiple versions of myself and we learned this fighting style from our shishou."

"I see."

"However, there is one thing I should warn you about."

"And what is it?"

Berserker Cu gulped before answering his question. "Don't show this to shishou. I have a bad feeling about it if she finds out about this..."

Shirou was confused, but he nodded anyways.

"Anyways...let's finish this," Berserker Cu said as he positioned himself in an offensive stance.

Shirou nodded and positioned himself in an offensive stance. For a few seconds, nothing happened.

Then they lunged at themselves with their weapons drawn.

And in a flash, their weapons crossed paths with each other. Both sides were at opposite ends when the clash was over.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then Berserker Cu let out a chuckle.

"Hey kid...you made this day quite interesting..." he said while twirling his spear around.

Shirou let out a sigh. "So, I take it that you were satisfied then?"

"Yup. Anyway, I got to go now. See you kid," he said as he left the arena and the training room.

Shirou let out another sigh of relief before feeling a slap on the back from Lancer Cu.

"Hey kid! That was a nice battle over there! Although I'll admit, I am a little annoyed that you copied my spear and posture when using it," Lancer Cu said cheerfully.

"Kid, you sure have surprised me today," Proto Cu said with a grin.

"I'll admit kid, I didn't expect that coming out of you," Caster Cu said with a smile.

"Why...thank you," Shirou said as he was recovering from Lancer Cu's hard slap.

"By the way...can you lend me a copy of Gae Bolg later?" Caster Cu asked Shirou hopefully.

Shirou was confused. "Why?"

"Because I miss my spear..." Caster Cu replied with a sigh.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Omake

Scathach was walking down Chaldea's hallways, minding her own business.

It was when that she overheard Cu and his alternate versions talking about something in one of the recreation rooms.

Or rather, a certain someone.

"Did you see what the kid just did?" Lancer Cu said.

"Yeah! Not only the kid completely gave us a good fight, but he even managed to scratch me!" Caster Cu replied.

"And there's the fact that he managed to replicate Gae Bolg..." Berserker Cu said.

"Shhh! Keep it down! What if shishou manages to overhear us?!" Proto Cu said in warning.

"Relax. That would be impossible. Shishou wouldn't be around here this time of day," Lancer Cu said in confidence.

"And who wouldn't be around here?" Scathach said from the corner of the hallway.

At that moment, Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu jumped in fear of hearing their teacher's voice. "S-S-S-Shishou?!" they said in unison.

Scathach then came into the room. "So, what's this I've been hearing about someone copying Gae Bolg? Huh?" she asked in a menacing voice.

"W-Well...it's sort of a-" Lancer Cu stutteringly said.

"Answer me," Scathach said authoritatively while menacingly at the same time with her hands crossed.

Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu slumped their heads in defeat and prepared themselves for the interrogation that was about to come. "Crap, I think we screwed the kid over..." they thought in unison.


	23. Magical Boy Shirou

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Fourth of July everyone! Hope everyone is having a great time, even though we're stuck in quarantine...

Shirou felt like he was being watched.

Okay, scratch that. He was definitely being watched.

And it can't be helped.

Because he was sticking out because of the damn outfit he was wearing!

Shirou sighed. "I shouldn't have picked up that weird stick from earlier..." he thought as his mind went back to what happened earlier...

_(A few hours earlier...)_

Shirou was walking down in Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business. As he was walking, he noticed a certain object on the ground.

"Hm? What's this?" Shirou thought as he picked the object up. The object itself looked like a wand with a design Shirou hasn't seen before. The appearance of said object consisted of a silver diamond in a ring that has two red beads with six silver wings and the size of each wing is smaller than the one above it. It also has a retractable handle that has a white top with a silver-colored cross at the bottom.

At first glance, the object didn't look that harmful.

However, the object then said something that shocked Shirou.

"Registering bio-metric DNA. User identity known as Emiya Shirou," the object said in a robotic voice.

"Wait, registering?" Shirou thought.

"Accessing user's magical circuits and skills. Inputting data from user's history."

_"What?! Hold on a second?!"_

"Contract complete. Now commencing transforming sequence."

_"Transformation sequence?! Just what the-"_

Before Shirou could even finish his thought, the stick started to bright up, making Shirou close his eyes for protection. The light then engulfed the stick and Shirou himself. As the light faded, Shirou opened his eyes to see if anything happened.

So far, it looked like nothing bad happened in Chaldea.

"Phew. Looks like nothing bad happened in Chaldea," Shirou thought. However, as he looked at his arms, he noticed that they were not in the outfit he was usually wearing. Shirou momentarily panicked and used one of the windows in Chaldea as a mirror to see what happened to his body. As he looked at his reflection in the window, the outfit he was wearing wasn't his usual one.

Instead, the outfit he was wearing was like Archer/EMIYA's outfit with a few modifications. The clothes he was wearing were the same as Archer/EMIYA's outfit, but there was a red cape on the back. He was also wearing a pair of white gloves, a black mask, and a formal red long hat.

And to top things off, the white gloves have a design that looked like the command seals Shirou had during his time as Arturia's master in the fifth holy grail war.

"What the heck?! Why am I wearing an outfit like this?! Aren't these Archer's clothes?! And what's with the cape and the hat?! And why are the gloves I'm wearing happened to have an image of the command seals that I used to have during my time as Arturia's master?!" Shirou thought as he was processing the information and outfit at the same time.

Shirou then tried to trace his weapons. However, to his surprise, he wasn't able to. "What the?! I can't trace my weapons?! Why is this happening!?" he thought.

After a few minutes, Shirou calmed down from his mind rant. He then looked at the item that completely changed his outfit and sealed his magecraft away. "Okay, so this item is apparently the reason why this is happening to me...and I have a weird feeling about who made this..."

Shirou sighed as he headed towards a certain servant's workshop, knowing who would create an item like this. "Da Vinci...just what have you created...?"

_(Back to the present...)_

"Jeez...does the cape really stand out that much? Or is it the hat?" Shirou thought as he was walking in Chaldea's hallway while trying to ignore the stares he kept getting from other servants. "Either way, once I head to Da Vinci's workshop, all of this will end soon..."

However, fate seems to have different plans for him.

As he was walking towards Da Vinci's workshop, he passed by the cafeteria.

It was at that moment that he was totally screwed.

Because inside the cafeteria was Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterpart, Ereshkigal, Parvati, BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, Kingprotea, Kama, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, Jaguar Man, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter.

And they were staring at Shirou.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then suddenly, Jaguar Man jumped out of her seat, came up towards Shirou, and started dragging him towards where everybody.

"SHIROU! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WEARING?! ARE YOU TRYING TO GO INTO COSPLAY?! AND IN THAT OUTFIT NETHERLESS?!" Jaguar Man yelled.

"Fuji-nee, it's a long story-"

"NO EXCUSES!"

She then dragged Shirou to a chair and made him sit there, allowing everyone to have a closer look at the outfit Shirou was wearing.

"S-Shirou...those clothes you're wearing..." Arturia and her counterparts muttered.

"Emiya-kun...to think you have this kind of hobby..." Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal muttered while snickering at the same time.

"Senpai...is into this kind of thing..." Parvati, BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, Kingprotea, and Kama muttered.

"Onii-chan..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu muttered as they stared at him intensely.

"Sherou..." Astraea muttered.

"Oh my, I didn't know that my son had this side of him..." Irisviel said.

Kiritsugu didn't say anything.

However, on the other hand, both EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were nearly freaking themselves out over the outfit Shirou was wearing.

"OKAY, WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?! JUST WHAT KIND OF STUPID THING DID MY YOUNGER SELF DID TO WEAR THAT COSTUME?! IN FACT, HOW DID HE OBTAIN THAT COSTUME?! THIS IS RIDICULOUS!" EMIYA thought.

"Okay, this is just too much for me. Seeing your younger self as a heroic spirit is one thing, but seeing him wearing the same outfit as your non-altered self? That's something that I really don't want to deal with, EVER. In fact, I wish this was all a dream, although that's impossible since servants don't dream..." EMIYA Alter thought.

Shirou sighed at the situation he was in. "So...I guess you all want to know why I'm wearing an outfit like this..."

Everyone nodded in unison.

"Well...it all started because of a weird stick I picked up earlier," Shirou replied.

Everyone was confused at what Shirou just said. "Weird stick?" they asked.

"Yeah," Shirou said as he pulled it out and let everyone in the room look at it. While the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, Jaguar Man, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter looked at it with a confused look on their faces, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu looked at the object with worry on their faces.

"This object...and that design...don't tell me..." they thought in unison.

However, at that moment, two new voices came out of nowhere.

"Well, well! Has Shirou started to become a magical boy! All right! Now he can join Illya and Miyu as the magical stick users!" the voice exclaimed.

"Nee-san, calm down..." the other voice said.

"But Sapphire-chan, Shirou's finally doing something interesting and fun!"

Everyone turned to the source of the voices, and Shirou's surprise, the source of the voices was sticks like the ones Shirou picked up.

"W-Who are you?" Shirou asked.

"Hm? Ah! Nice to meet you Shirou! I'm the magic stick of love and justice, Magical Ruby-chan! And over here is my little sister, Magical Sapphire-chan!"

"Nice to meet you Shirou-san," Sapphire said.

Shirou was still shocked that two sticks were talking, but still replied. "N-Nice to meet you two..."

"Anyways, Shirou has finally embraced the ways of the magical boys! Now Illya, you must teach him in the ways of being a magical stick user!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Ruby! Calm down!" Illya said.

"But Illya!"

"Uh Illya...by any chance...is that stick yours?"

Illya blushed at Shirou's question, now knowing that Shirou knows that the stick is hers. "Y-Yes..."

"And the other stick...is that yours Miyu?"

"Y-Yes..."

Shirou sighed as he felt like he opened another can of worms here. "Just what have I got myself into..." he thought.

However, it was at that moment that Da Vinci came into the room, huffing for some breath as she looked like she ran a marathon.

"Excuse me...but as anyone of you...ever seen...a...fancy...stick..." Da Vinci muttered as looked at the stick in Shirou's possession.

After a few seconds of silence, Da Vinci immediately went up to Shirou and grabbed him by the arm.

"What the-"

"Come with me. I have a lot to discuss with you," she said before she started dragging him from the cafeteria, leaving everyone surprised with the events that just transpired.

"What just happened?" was the thought they all had in mind.

Meanwhile, Da Vinci was dragging Shirou to her workshop. As they arrived, Shirou noticed that she had a face of relief and worry at the same time.

"Shirou, you're probably wondering why I dragged you here right?" Da Vinci asked.

"Is it because of the weird stick that I picked up, correct?"

"Exactly."

Shirou sighed. "Da Vinci, just what is this stick? And why did it turn me into...this?"

"Well...that's a prototype mystic code that I've been working on lately. It was based on the sticks your little sisters have. What it does is that it manipulates the mana within the user and assist them by either acting as medium to fire energy blasts or reinforce physical parameters. Originally, it was supposed to be given to Ritsuka for him to use in case of emergencies, but..."

"You somehow dropped it in the hallway, and then I picked it up, resulting into this," Shirou said as he finished Da Vinci's explanation.

"Yes..." Da Vinci muttered with a blush of embarrassment on her face.

"And why did this mystic code seal my magecraft away?"

"Well...it's a prototype, so it was bound that there would be a few side effects...like what just happened to you..."

Shirou sighed. "Well at least we have an explanation...although did you design the mystic code to give me an outfit like this?"

"Well...no. I have no idea how the outfit ended up looking like Archer's."

Shirou sighed again. "Anyway, how do I reverse the transformation?"

"Well...give me the mystic code and I'll see what to do."

Shirou then gave Da Vinci the mystic code and she examined it. After a few minutes of examining it, she had her answer.

"Okay I have a solution. Do you want to hear it?"

Shirou listened, waiting patiently for her answer.

"You'll have to break it."

Shirou was baffled. "Really?"

"Yeah."

Shirou sighed before asking one more question. "Earlier from what one of the sticks said, is it true that Illya and Miyu are magical girls?"

Da Vinci sighed before saying, "Yes."

"I see. Anyways, I'll be leaving now, so thank you Da Vinci," he said as he was walking out the door of Da Vinci's workshop.

"Your welcome Shirou!" she said.

As Shirou walked out of Da Vinci's workshop, he thought, "Okay. So, all I have to do is to destroy it. Well, that shouldn't be hard...although how did Illya became a magical girl in the first place...?"

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Turns out that destroying it was a lot harder than imagined.

Apparently, the material that was used to make the prototype mystic code happened to be stronger than most metals around in Chaldea. No matter what he did, it just wouldn't break. He tried smashing it, but it failed. He tried to blow it up, but it failed. And there were even times where he would just use the mystic code as target practice just for the hope of breaking it.

Sadly, that did not work as well.

Not only that, but since it sealed away his magecraft, he can only attack with the prototype mystic code.

And that wasn't the worst part.

The worst part about the ordeal he was going through was the reactions he was getting from other servants.

For example, the first time Lancer Cu saw him wearing that outfit, he immediately started laughing like a hyena on first sight. It also didn't help that his other versions' reactions were the same as well.

Rider Medusa let out a small chuckle and made a comment on how Shirou looked like a magician from t.v.

Caster Medea on the other hand seemed to dislike it, say that it mocks real magicians.

Sasaki Kojiro didn't have any words on it.

Berserker Hercules just roared at him.

Archer Gilgamesh...laughed at it, saying how ridiculous it looks on him while both Caster and Kid Gilgamesh just sighed at it. They even told him to change outfits.

Nero and her alternate versions liked it, saying it looks good on him.

Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily giggled a bit while Jeanne D'Arc Alter laughed at the sight of Shirou's costume, saying how ridiculous it looks.

The knights of the Round didn't say anything, although Mordred did giggle at the outfit.

Jack, Paul, and Abigail, and Nursery said he look like a magician from tv.

Mashu was confused about Shirou's outfit while Ritsuka was in wonder of the outfit.

Apparently, the outfit reminded him of an anime he watched a long time ago.

Right now, Shirou was in a singularity with Ritsuka, Mashu, Illya, Kuro, and Miyu. They were currently at a campfire that Shirou, Illya, Kuro, and Miyu set up earlier. As they were chatting, Illya asked Shirou a question.

"Hey onii-chan, how long are you going to wear that outfit?" Illya asked.

Shirou sighed. "Honestly, I'm not sure. Da Vinci told me in order to revert myself back to normal, I need to break it. However, the problem is that no matter what I try, nothing works."

"Is that so?" Kuro asked.

"Yeah..."

"Onii-chan, has the outfit hindered you in any way?" Miyu asked.

"Yes. It sealed up my magecraft. I can still fight though..."

"I see..."

"Hey Shirou! If I may want to ask, that outfit of yours look like a magical boy!" Ruby exclaimed as she wanted to get into the conversation.

Everyone did a spitake at that moment. "W-What?!" Shirou exclaimed.

"You heard me! The cape, suit, mask, gloves, and the hat? Everything about that outfit looks like a magical boy! In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Da Vinci wanted to be a magical girl right now!"

"What? That can't be. Right master?"

"R-Right. There's no way Da Vinci would ever want to be a magical girl, right Mashu?" Ritsuka said.

"Y-Yes!" Mashu replied.

As the night went on, everyone else besides Shirou went asleep. As Shirou looked at everyone asleep, Shirou sighed as he looked at the prototype mystic code in his hands. "What should I do..."

It was when that Sapphire decided to help Shirou.

"Shirou-san."

"Hm? Oh, Sapphire-san. What is it?"

"I think I may have a solution to your problem..."

_(The next day...)_

"Take that!" Illya yelled out as she shot a laser at an enemy bandit. "Is there anyone else?"

"Nope. I think we're done with all of them..." Miyu said as she was gasping for breath.

"Yeah. But still, that was too many..." Kuro said.

"You have a good point. Anyways, let us move on master," Shirou said.

Soon, Shirou, Ritsuka, Mashu, Illya, Kuro, and Miyu left the field they were on and headed towards an Bandits' hideout. However, as they arrived, the hideout suddenly exploded, creating a large amount of dust. As the dust cleared, it revealed a giant rock golem.

"Ghhh...senpai! Are you alright?!" Mashu asked.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Right now, we need to focus on that golem!" Ritsuka replied.

"Master's right! Illya, Kuro, Miyu!" Shirou yelled out.

"Yes! Onii-chan!" They replied.

Shirou, Illya, Kuro, and Miyu went up against the golem while Mashu stayed behind to protect Ritsuka. As Shirou, Illya, Kuro, and Miyu went up against the golem, most of their attacks were not effective against it.

"Jeez! How hard is this thing!?" Illya asked.

"I don't know, but it seems to be pretty hard!" Kuro replied.

"Yes...and it seems like it has a high resistance against both magical and physical attacks...and it also regenerates as well..." Miyu said as she tried to dodge a punch from the golem.

"Miyu has a good point over there," Shirou said as he shot a mana blast to the golem, afflicting minor damage on him. "So, mana blasts work, but only do minor damage huh? What should we do in this situation...?"

As he thought about a solution to the problem in front of him, he just realized what Sapphire said last night to him.

_(Last night...)_

"Try overloading it with your mana..." Sapphire said.

"Overloading it with my mana?" Shirou asked.

"Yes. Overloading the prototype mystic code should probably break it. Even a mystic code shouldn't be able to handle being overloaded with a bunch of mana."

"I see..."

_(Back to the present...)_

"Let's hope what Sapphire said works..." Shirou thought as he dodged another punch from the golem. As he dodged it, he somehow ended up regrouping with Illya, Kuro, Miyu, Ritsuka, and Mashu together.

"Hey master, I have an idea on how to damage him," Shirou said.

"Really?!" he asked.

"Yes, but I'm going to need Illya, Kuro, and Miyu's help on this..."

"Sure," he said.

"What's your plan onii-chan?" Illya asked.

Shirou sighed before saying, "We're going to fire a large mana blast at it."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Earlier, mana blasts worked against him, but at a smaller degree. However, if we unleash a huge mana blast at him..."

"Then the golem would fall..." Miyu finished.

"Exactly."

Kuro grinned. "Okay, so how does this plan work Onii-chan?"

"Kuro, you distract the golem while me, Illya, and Miyu charge up our sticks and unleash a giant mana burst on it. You okay with that?"

"Yeah!"

"Okay then, let the plan begin!"

Kuro then lunged at the golem and threw multiple copies of Kanshou and Bakuya at him to keep him distracted. As so, the golem then focuses its attention on Kuro. Meanwhile, Shirou, Illya, and Miyu were charging up their sticks, preparing themselves to unleash a giant mana blast at the golem.

"I hope this works..." Illya said.

"Me too..." Miyu said.

"It's our best shot, so we'll have to make this one count..." Shirou said.

Meanwhile, Kuro was doing her best distracting the golem from targeting Shirou, Illya, and Miyu. "Hurry up you three, I can't hold him much long you know!" she thought as she fired a magic sword at the golem with her bow.

It was then that the golem then threw a giant rock at the group of three. "Oh shit!" Kuro thought.

However, Mashu appeared in front of the group of three and whacked the rock away with her shield.

"Never mind me Kuro-san! Just keep distracting it!" Mashu said.

"Right!" Kuro said as she resumed to distract the golem.

Eventually, Shirou, Illya, and Miyu were done charging their sticks.

"We're ready Kuro!" Illya said.

Kuro grinned. "Don't miss you know!"

Kuro and Mashu then moved out of the way, allowing Shirou, Illya, and Miyu to shoot their sticks at the golem.

"TAKE THIS! TRIPLE SIBLING BEAM!" Ruby yelled out.

As Ruby said that embarrassing line, Shirou, Illya, and Miyu then shot a huge blast of mana at the golem, engulfing it in a blast of light. Mashu then returned to Ritsuka's side to shield him from the blast radius while Kuro hid behind Mashu as well.

As the light cleared, the golem was gone. Everyone sighed in relief as the threat was over.

"Whew. Well that was close..." Ritsuka said.

"Yeah..." Mashu replied.

"Jeez, I think that attack a bit overkill..." Kuro muttered.

"Yeah..." Shirou said as he examined the damage the attack did to the hideout.

"You're probably right...uh onii-chan?" Illya said.

"What...is it...Illya?"

"Your outfit...it's back to normal..."

Shirou then looked at himself and he noticed that he was wearing his normal clothes. He also noticed that the prototype mystic code was broken, shattered into pieces.

"Oh...it seems like the...prototype mystic code...has been destroyed..." Shirou said before passing out.

Illya sighed. "Onii-chan..."

"Well, this was expected from him after all," Kuro said.

"Yeah," Miyu said.

"Well, it looks like my idea worked," Sapphire said.

"Eh? But I want to see Shirou in this outfit a bit longer..." Ruby muttered. "He looked like he would fit in the role of a magical boy..."

Illya blushed at what Ruby just said. "RUBY!"

Mashu sighed. "Well, at least we finished the mission senpai."

"Yeah Mashu. We did..." Ritsuka said.


	24. Faker Meets A Godkiller and A Ice Queen

"Phew. Guess after days with that prototype mystic code hasn't dulled my skills...although now I have a weird feeling of shooting beams out of my swords..." Shirou thought as he was practicing his magecraft in Chaldea's training room.

It has been a few days since the day Shirou had the prototype mystic code destroyed. While Shirou was glad that he got both his magecraft and outfit back after the prototype mystic code was destroyed, he was still confused about how a prototype mystic code Da Vinci made had a costume that looked like a magical boy from anime.

As Shirou was focusing on his magecraft, he didn't notice a servant coming into the room.

That servant was Scathach, the queen of the land of shadows.

Who happened to be Cu and his alternate versions' teacher.

"So, that's the kid Setanta and his alternate versions were talking about..." Scathach as her thoughts went back to the time where she had to interrogate them about Emiya Shirou...

_(A few days ago...)_

__

"So, what's this I've been hearing about someone copying Gae Bolg? Huh?" Scathach asked in a menacing voice.

"W-Well...it's sort of a-" Lancer Cu stutteringly said.

"Answer me," Scathach said authoritatively while menacingly at the same time with her hands crossed.

Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu slumped their heads in defeat and prepared themselves for the interrogation that was about to come. "Crap, I think we screwed the kid over..." they thought in unison.

"Well, I'm waiting..." she said as she was tapping her foot.

Lancer Cu sighed in defeat and said, "Well...do you remember where I told you about the time that I failed to kill a certain magus three times in a holy grail war?"

"Yes. And I remember increasing your training afterwards because of it," Scathach replied.

Lancer Cu sighed again as he remembered the hellish experience he went through after that. "That certain magus that I failed to kill three times is the same kid that copied Gae Bolg."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. And apparently, the kid can not only copy Gae Bolg, but he can also copy our fighting styles as well."

Scathach was slightly amused when hearing this. "Really?"

"Yeah."

"Huh. And I assumed that he beat all of you?"

Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu gulped after hearing Scathach's question.

"Well?"

"Y-Yes..." they muttered in unison.

For a moment, she didn't say anything, making Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu freaking out on the inside.

Because when Scathach is quiet for a while, she's thinking of something painful.

"Oh crap! I've got a bad feeling about this!" they thought in unison.

"Setanta."

"Y-Yes?!"

"Tomorrow, I'm doubling your training menu. Prepare yourselves until then," she said as she walked out of the room Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu were in.

Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu sweatdropped as they heard that. "Well, we're screwed...and maybe the kid too..." they thought in unison.

"Hm...a magus that can copy weapons at sight and is able to copy fighting styles as well...he seems interesting..." Scathach thought as she walked out.

_(Back to the present...)_

Scathach was walking up behind Shirou, not letting herself being known with her presence concealment skill. As she was directly behind him, she let herself be known to him.

"You seem to be doing something interesting."

Shirou's eyes widen and he turned his head in awe to see Scathach in her beauty and wearing her skin-tight black bodysuit.

"Is my face that fascinating?" Scathach asked, sounding amused.

Shirou snapped out of his daze and asked, "Who are you?"

Scathach gracefully stood, revealing her goddess-like body in full. "My name is Scathach, the queen of the land of shadows. I am a god-killer and teacher of the Child of Light, who you may know by the name of Cu Cuchulainn."

Shirou was surprised to see after hearing her introduction. "I-I see. My name is Emiya Shirou."

"I see...so that is your name then."

"So...Scathach, how did you find out about me?"

"Well...I was told about you from Setanta and his alternate versions..."

"I see, and why are you here right now?"

"Well, after hearing you defeating Setanta and his alternate versions has made me have an interest in you. What's more is that you were able to copy Gae Bolg and his fighting style as well, in which I taught him. Therefore, I wish to fight you."

Shirou gulped as he heard that. "You aren't mad, aren't you?"

Scathach laughed at what Shirou just said. "No. Just interested."

"And I can't say no right?"

"Yes."

Shirou sighed. "This is just like what happened with Cu and his alternate versions..." he thought. "Well, follow me to the arena," he said as he went to the training arena.

Scathach accepted Shirou's request and followed him to the arena. As they arrived on the arena, Shirou and Scathach went into different corners of the arena. Shirou then drew his katana while Scathach drew her spears.

"Ready?"

"Yeah."

"Well then, here I go!"

Scathach charged at him, using a tenth of her strength. She wanted to see what he was capable of, not overwhelm him with just sheer strength. Especially after hearing from Cu and his alternate versions on how he beat all of them and gave them a good fight. She swatted at him with her spears only for him to hop over them, and swing at her with his own blade. Scathach moved back, avoiding an injury by a hair's breadth. She then spun her spears deftly in her hands, getting him outside of her guard before she poked at him repeatedly through the many holes in Shirou's defense.

And yet, he sidestepped, deflected, and dodged every single attack she threw at him, before swinging her sword at her again. He just managed to tap her on the tip of her nose this time, surprising her.

"How is he doing that? His stance is full of openings. I've counted at least 30 openings in his stance and yet he avoided every strike I threw at him...I can see why Setanta and his alternate versions have trouble fighting against him."

Emiya Shirou kept facinating her to no end. She wanted to learn more. Scathach put a little more power into her strikes now, and Shirou still countered her every strike back.

At that point, both sides decided to distance the space between each and moved back to their sides of the arena.

"You know...you seem pretty good. I can see how Setanta and his other versions would have a hard time defeating you and well...killing you. Heck, you even manage to cut me, and that's something only a few can do," Scathach said with a smile on her face.

"Well thank you for the complement," Shirou replied.

"But...how about you unleash your magecraft on me right now? I am quite interested in how you are able to copy weapons."

Shirou smirked. "As you wish," he said as he raised his arms and said his aria. "Trace on."

In an instant, a copy of Gae Bolg appeared in his hands as he began to position himself into Cu's stance. "Will this suffice?" he asked.

Scathach smiled. "Yes."

In an instant, both servants lunged at each other. Their spears clashing against each other, strike against strike, parry against parry, and guard against guard. Both Shirou and Scathach were copying each other. During this encounter of strikes and parries, Scathach thought to herself, "Wow. Emiya Shirou seems to be a lot better than I expected. The fact that he's not only able to copy Gae Bolg to every detail, but he was able to replicate Setanta's fighting style..."

"Wow. So, this is Cu's teacher? She is a lot stronger and faster than Cu. Well then again, she does have the title, "The Queen of the Land of Shadows..." Shirou thought as he blocked another strike from Scathach.

Eventually, both servants ended their clash with each other and went to their sides of the arena.

"Wow. Never have I ever seen anyone other than Setanta use Gae Bolg so easily, and replicate his fighting style..."

"Are you mad about it? If you want, I can change fighting styles," Shirou asked as he diminished Gae Bolg from his hands.

Scathach smiled. "Don't. I want to see more of it," she said as she readied herself for another strike.

However, it was then that another servant came in.

"Hey other me, is that the kid your student and his counterparts were talking about?"

Shirou and Scathach turned around to see a servant standing in the doorway of the training room. At the doorway was a servant that looked like Scathach, but was wearing a purple dress instead. She was also wearing a crown and instead of wielding a spear, she was carrying a wand.

"Ah. Hey caster me," Scathach said to her caster counterpart.

"Is that-" Shirou asked.

"Yes. That is my caster counterpart," Scathach replied.

Scathach Skadi came up to Shirou and said. "You must be the kid my counterpart's student and his counterparts were talking about."

"Y-Yeah...who are you?"

Scathach Skadi cleared her throat before introducing herself. "My name is Scathach Skadi, a bride of the ancient Norse gods, and the queen of ice and snow."

"I-I see. My name is Emiya Shirou."

"Emiya Shirou...so that is your name...huh?"

"Y-Yeah. How did you know about me Scathach Skadi?"

"Well..." she said as her thoughts went back to what happened earlier...

_(A few days ago...)_

Scathach Skadi was walking in Chaldea's hallways, getting her daily dose of ice cream. It was then that she passed by the room Cu and his counterparts were in and overheard them muttering about something.

"Crap. We're screwed now...and the kid too..." Lancer Cu muttered.

"No kidding. Not only we have our training menu doubled, but now shishou has her eyes on the kid," Proto Cu said.

"Oh boy, this can't be good for him..." Caster Cu said.

"Yeah. Just imagine the things she'll do to him..." Berserker Cu said.

Lancer Cu, Proto Cu, Caster Cu, and Berserker Cu shuddered at the thought of the things if Scathach managed to find Shirou.

Then they started to pray.

"Kid, if you manage to meet shishou or her alternate version or both at the same time...I pray for your survival..." they thought in unison.

Meanwhile, Scathach Skadi overheard the conversation Lancer Cu had with his counterparts and thought, "A servant outside of Cu and his counterparts has gotten the attention of my counterpart? This I got to see..."

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's how I got here," Scathach Skadi said.

Shirou was surprised about the conversation Lancer Cu had with his alternate versions while Scathach looked stoic and didn't say anything. "Jeez, just how scary Scathach can be? To think that Cu and his alternate versions started praying for my safety...that's something I would have never thought to see..."

"Are you listening to me?" Scathach Skadi asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Sorry. Anyways, what are you doing here Scathach Skadi?" Shirou asked.

"Well, after hearing how you apparently got the attention of my counterpart from her student and his alternate versions, I wanted to see if you would measure up to their expectations," Scathach Skadi replied.

"I-I see..."

"Anyways, do you mind if I fight him right now?" Scathach Skadi asked her counterpart.

Scathach thought about it and said, "Sure. I've already had my evaluation of him now."

"And the results?"

Scathach smirked. "He's something alright. He even scratched me a bit."

Scathach Skadi was surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah. Go test him out if you don't believe me," Scathach said as she got out of the arena. Scathach Skadi then entered the arena and drew out her wand.

"Ready?" Scathach Skadi asked.

"Yeah," Shirou replied.

"Well, here I go," she said as she took a step. In an instant, a giant wall of ice appeared, making Shirou to dodge.

"What the?! Did she just summon a wall of ice with her foot?!" Shirou thought.

"Hey, do not get distracted," Scathach Skadi said as she waved her wand around, runes appeared in the air. In an instant, the runes turned into large shards of ice and headed towards Shirou. Shirou immediately dodged the shards of ice, but Scathach Skadi lunged towards Shirou, turned her wand into a giant ice sword. She swung her giant ice sword and Shirou blocked it with his blade. Shirou the pushed the ice blade back with his own and swung his sword at her. However, she jumped back and in an instant, more runes appeared behind her in a circle and she started shooting lasers at him. Shirou then blocked the lasers with his blade, much to Scathach Skadi's surprise.

"Interesting. The fact that he had blocked some of the lasers with his blade and hasn't broken yet...must be a case of reinforcement magecraft," Scathach Skadi thought as Shirou blocked the lasers with a few scratches on his body.

"Wow. So that's Scathach Skadi...it seems I can't let my guard down when it comes to her..." Shirou thought.

For a few minutes, it was silent between the two. Then Scathach Skadi said something.

"Emiya Shirou."

"What is it?"

"You seem to be quite an interesting fellow. To turn something as useless as reinforcement into something quite fearsome...you earned my interest."

"Why thank you."

"Although...is reinforcement magecraft the only thing you know of?"

"Not quite. I do know projection magecraft as well."

"Projection magecraft?"

"Yeah."

"I see...would you like to show it to me?"

"As you wish," Shirou said as he sheathed his blade back into its scabbard and raised his hands. "Trace on."

In an instant, Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in his hands, grabbing Scathach Skadi's interest. "Oh? So, he can use projection magecraft like this...this is interesting..."

"Hm...so he can copy not only spears, but also swords as well...guess Setanta was right after all," Scathach thought as she watched the fight between Shirou and Scathach Skadi.

Meanwhile in the fight, Scathach Skadi jumped and summoned a giant fragment of ice, dropping it on Shirou. Shirou immediately dodged it and threw Kanshou and Bakuya at her. Scathach Skadi dodged it easily and going to shoot more lasers at Shirou.

However, before she could do so, she felt Kanshou and Bakuya coming from behind and immediately dodged it at the last moment. Shirou then caught Kanshou and Bakuya and then headed towards Scathach Skadi. Scathach Skadi then proceeds to shoot more lasers at Shirou, but Shirou was dodging them. While doing that, he also projected multiple copies of Kanshou and Bakuya and started throwing them at Scathach Skadi.

As a result, laser and sword met together, creating both an array of offense and defense for them. Eventually, they got tired of using this tactic and started to switch it up.

"You know, never have I ever seen someone turn a useless magecraft into a formidable weapon," Scathach Skadi said with a grin on a face as she landed on the floor of the arena.

Shirou chucked. "You aren't the only one who has ever said that to me."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Trust me, you have no idea how many people tell me that every time I show it to them..." Shirou said with a sigh.

Scathach Skadi chuckled. "I see," she said as she turned her wand into a giant ice sword. "Let's finish this."

"Agree," Shirou replied as he readied himself in a lunging pose.

After a few seconds of silence between the two, Shirou and Scathach Skadi lunged at each other with their weapons. In a moment, their weapons met each other as they clashed with each other and landed in opposite sides of the arena.

Everything was silent in that moment as Shirou and Scathach Skadi were standing still after that encounter.

It was then that Scathach Skadi broke the silence.

With a laughter.

"Hahahahaha..."

Shirou was confused why Scathach Skadi was laughing.

"Emiya Shirou, you truly are worthy of me and my counterpart's interest. I can see why my counterpart's student and his alternate versions would have a great time fighting you."

"Why thank you."

"Although, you could use some more training."

"I'll take that in mind then," Shirou said as he got off the arena. "Anyways, I got to go right now, so bye Scathach and Scathach Skadi," he said.

"Sure. You go ahead then," Scathach said.

"Yeah."

Shirou then left the training room, leaving Scathach and Scathach Skadi alone.

"He seems to be an nice and interesting fellow, don't you think?" Scathach Skadi asked to her counterpart.

"Yeah. He managed to turn a useless magecraft into a weapon. And he managed to hit me," Scathach replied.

Scathach Skadi was surprised. "Is that so?"

"Yeah."

After hearing Scathach's words, Scathach Skadi thought, "Emiya Shirou...he may have the potential to be a great warrior...wonder if I should train him the next time I see him..."

"Emiya Shirou...Setanta said that he was a magus in the holy grail war he was in...wonder what would happen if I was his servant in the holy grail war he was in..." Scathach thought.

Meanwhile, Lancer Cu and his alternate versions sneezed and shuddered for no reason...


	25. Fan Art

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: This was based from an FGO fan 4koma called, "Osakabe-hime: The Artist Friend." Hope you like it.

Mordred Pendragon was walking down Chaldea's hallway, minding her own business. As she was walking down, she ran in Blackbeard carrying a bunch of doujinshis and video games.

"Jeez...that pirate seriously needs to lay off with the doujinshis and video games...if anyone can get him to..." Mordred thought as she accidentally bumped into him, making him drop all of the stuff he was carrying.

"Ah! The stuff I borrowed from Osakabehime!" Blackbeard thought as he saw the stuff fall over. "Mordred!"

"Hey! You bumped into me first!" Mordred argued.

"You weren't even paying attention to where you were going!" Blackbeard argued back.

The two then glared at each other to make the other back down before both thought it was pointless arguing against each other any further.

"Anyways, can you help me pick all of this up?" Blackbeard asked Mordred.

"Whatever..." she said as she grabbed a few doujinshis that had dropped from the pile. As she was picking up the doujinshis that dropped from the pile Blackbeard was holding, she noticed a piece of paper on the ground. "Hm? What is this?" she thought.

As she picked up the piece of paper, what she saw on the paper completely shocked her.

It was a drawing of Emiya Shirou.

Blackbeard noticed Mordred picking up the drawing of Emiya Shirou and nearly was in shock. "Ah! Oh shit! Mordred picked up the one thing I did not want anyone to take a look at! Well...other than the collection of doujinshis, figurines, video games, and visual novels I picked up over the years...but still!" he thought.

"Blackbeard!" Mordred yelled out.

"W-What?!"

"Why do you have a picture of mother?! Were you the one who drew this?!"

"Uh...well...I'm not the one who drew it..."

"Then who?!"

"Uhm...you see...I already made a promise not to tell..."

"Huuh?! What do you mean by that?! If there's someone else involved, then tell me! Or else I'll shove Clarent down your throat!" Mordred said as she had Clarent ready and to shove it down his throat.

"All right! All right!" Blackbeard said fearfully as he did not want to return to the Throne of Heroes. "Sorry Osakabehime...but it seems like I can't keep your promise..." Blackbeard thought as he brought out his smartphone and started texting to Osakabehime.

_(Meanwhile in Osakabehime's room...)_

Osakabehime was at her kotatsu, working on a new drawing on her tablet. As she was working on her digital drawing, she had a new notification on her PC.

She stopped for a moment and checked the notification. As she checked it, she noticed that she received a message from Blackbeard. "Blackbeard? Is he finally done with the stuff I lend him a while ago?"

However, as she checked the contents of the message, she was terrified.

**"Mordred-shi saw the pic of Emiya Shirou drawn by Okki! Sorryyyy!"**

Osakabehime was terrified about this. In an instant, she sent a message back to Blackbeard.

**"Huuuuuuh?! Didn't you promise not to show it to anyone?! Stuuuuupid Blackie!"**

**"Is it okay if I tell her that you're the one who drew it?"**

**"It's embarrassing, so definitely not!"**

**"But if I don't tell her, she'll kill meeeeee!"**

**"Then die and go back to the throne!"**

**"That's mean! You're not human!"**

**"Duh! I'm a yokai!"**

**"Just help meeeeeee!"**

**"Sorry, but you're on your own!"**

_(Back to where Mordred and Blackbeard were...)_

"Great, now what am I going to do?! Mordred's definitely going to kill me if I don't say anything!" Blackbeard thought with a sigh.

"Well?! Who's the person that drew this picture of mother?! Now tell me or else I'll kill you with Clarent!" Mordred yelled out.

Blackbeard sighed again as he gave up for his life's safety. "Follow me..." he muttered.

Blackbeard then went to Osakabehime's room with Mordred following him. As they arrived at the front door of Osakabehime's room, Blackbeard knocked on the door.

"Okki...it's me...Mordred's here as well..." Blackbeard said dejectedly.

No response came from the room.

"If you aren't responding, then I'm coming in!" Mordred yelled.

In an instant, the door opened, revealing Osakabehime wearing her hood down enough to cover her top part of her face.

"H-Hi Blackie and Mordred...please come in..." she muttered.

Mordred and Blackbeard then went into Osakabehime's room, which looked like a hardcore otaku's room. There were posters of anime characters hanging around, multiple video games, doujinshis, manga, and visual novels stacking in piles, a kotatsu in the middle of the room, and a desk with a PC and tablet in the corner of her room. Osakabehime, Mordred, and Blackbeard sat down at where the kotatsu was.

"So, you're the one who drew this...?" Mordred asked Osakabehime.

"Ah...y-yes...I'm s-sorry..." Osakabehime said.

"Why did you draw my mother?"

"Well...it happened a few days ago. You see, I was going through a slump then and I didn't have any inspiration to draw something. It was then that one day, I came upon the servant known as Emiya Shirou in the training room, and BAM! My inspiration came back!"

"I see..."

For a few seconds, there was silence between them as Mordred didn't say anything while both Blackbeard and Osakabehime were nervously waiting for Mordred's reaction.

"She is still scary, even when silent..." Blackbeard and Osakabehime thought.

"Hey, Osakabehime," Mordred suddenly said.

"Y-Yes?!"

"This drawing of mother..."

Osakabehime gulped. "W-What about it?"

Mordred stuttered for a moment before saying, "D-Draw one for me too..."

Both Blackbeard and Osakabehime were surprised at Mordred's words. "Eh?!" they said in unison.

"Y-You heard me! D-Draw one for me too..." Mordred said with a blush on her face.

"But why?" Osakabehime asked.

"I-I just want a picture of mother in my room! Is that hard to do?!"

"Well no...but..."

"If so, then do it!"

Despite being surprised at Mordred's sudden request, Osakabehime smiled and she proceeded to grab her tablet and started doing a digital drawing of Emiya Shirou. As she was drawing, Mordred was impressed with the amount of detail put into it.

"Wow! You're hella good at this!"

"T-Thank you..." Osakabehime replied.

"Hey, can you draw a picture of the Lancer version of my father?"

"Hey! That's not fair! She promised to draw Euryale for me next Mordred!" Blackbeard argued.

"Will you two keep it down?! Both of you are interrupting my work!" Osakabehime yelled out, making Mordred and Blackbeard shut their mouths.

After a few minutes of Osakabehime on the tablet and printing the digital drawing out, Osakabehime then handed the completed drawing to her. "Well?" she asked.

Mordred took one look at the drawing and said, "It's amazing! I'll take it!"

Osakabehime sighed in relief as Mordred calmed down from the earlier rage she had earlier.

"Thanks for the drawing!" Mordred said as she got out of the room in a hurry, leaving Blackbeard and Osakabehime alone in her room.

"Well...that was close..." Blackbeard said.

"Yeah...I thought she was going to kill me..." Osakabehime muttered.

"Me too...good thing it ended without any of us dying."

"That's true...by the way, do you still all of that stuff I let you borrow from me?

Blackbeard's jaw nearly dropped in shock as he forgot to pick them up from his earlier encounter with Mordred. "Aw shit!" he thought.

Mordred was walking down Chaldea's hallway with a smile on her face, happy that she now has a picture of Emiya Shirou to keep in her room.

And in good quality too.

"Well then, where should I hang this picture of mother in my room?" she thought. However, in her process of thought, she accidentally bumped into a servant, making them fall. As she recovered from her fall, she now happened to know who the servant was she just bumped into.

It was Arturia.

"Aw shit! Of all people to bump into with after getting a picture of mother, why did it have to be father?! Great, this is not going to end well if she finds out about the picture of mother...I need to hide it somehow!" Mordred thought.

"Mordred, are you okay?" Arturia said as she got up

"Huh? Y-Yeah, I'm fine," Mordred replied.

It was then that Arturia noticed a piece of paper on the ground and picked it up.

"What's this?" Arturia thought as she flipped the paper over.

"Oh no! The picture of mother!" Mordred thought in horror.

As Arturia turned the paper over, Arturia was in awe of what she saw. The picture of Emiya Shirou that Osakabehime drew for Mordred was a front view of Emiya Shirou projecting a katana with one hand while the other hand was holding his kimono, showing the inside of it. The inside of the kimono was blue with designs of flowers and the katana was in a light blue, showing it being projected. The background itself was a blackish background with sparks of red floating around him.

All and all, it was a high-quality drawing.

"Aw shit! Now she knows!"

"Um Mordred?"

Mordred gulped. "W-What is it father?"

"What is this?"

"Uhm...it's a drawing of mother?"

"I can see that. Who drew this?"

"Uhm...Osakabehime..."

For a moment, everything was silent between the two. "Oh crap, Father must be mad..." Mordred thought as Arturia didn't say anything.

"I see..." she said.

Then in a moment, she gave the picture back to Mordred and started walking away, surprising Mordred.

"I-Is father actually...no way...would she...nah..." Mordred thought.

However, her thought was completely wrong.

Because within a few minutes, Arturia arrived at the front door of Osakabehime's and knocked on the door.

"Who's there?" Osakabehime asked.

"Arturia Pendragon."

"M-Mordred's mother, or rather father she calls it?"

"Yes. I have a request for you."

Osakabehime opened the door slowly. "W-What is it?"

Arturia took a deep breath before saying, "T-That picture of Shirou you drew earlier..."

"Y-Yeah. What about it?"

Arturia took another deep breath before saying her request. "M-Make one for me too."

Both Osakabehime and Blackbeard (who just happened to be in the room) were surprised from Arturia's request and said, "EHHHHHH?!"

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou Emiya was having a weird week.

Well...at this point, a weird week would be considered normal to Shirou.

But this week was especially weird.

Because any time he would interact with any of the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Neros, and Jeanne and her alter, they would look at him with a blush and immediately run away.

And it wasn't only them.

Lately, every time Shirou passes by Merlin, he would give him a sly grin.

Like he was congratulating him for something.

Honestly, he has absolutely no clue what was going on.

"Seriously, what is up with everyone today? It's like they're giving me a weird look for something that I didn't do. Especially Merlin, he's seriously creeping me out..." Shirou thought as he was walking down Chaldea's hallway.

It was at that point that he noticed a piece of paper lying down on the floor. As he picked it up, he was shocked at what it was.

It was a drawing of himself.

"What the heck? Why is there a drawing of me here? In fact, why did someone draw me to begin with?" Shirou thought as he examined the drawing. As he examined the drawing, he noticed a tiny signature on the bottom if the image.

And the signature had her name on it.

Shirou sighed as he now knew what was going on lately. "Well...time to pay a visit to Osakabehime..."

After asking a few servants where Osakabehime's room is, Shirou finally arrived at his location. "Well, here goes nothing..." Shirou thought to himself. He then knocked on the door. "Excuse me, but is Osakabehime here?"

For a few seconds, nothing happened. Then a voice came from the room.

"W-Who is it?"

"Emiya Shirou."

At that moment, sounds of items falling on each other were heard along with someone moving around.

"E-Emiya Shirou?!" Osakabehime said with stutter in her voice. "J-Just give me a moment!"

After a few minutes of silence, the door to Osakabehime's room opened. "P-Please come in..." she muttered.

Shirou then went into Osakabehime's room and was surprised at how much stuff he has in her room. "Wow, she must be a collector..."

"W-What brings you here, Emiya Shirou..."

"Well...it's about this..." Shirou said as he showed her the drawing of himself.

Osakabehime sighed. "I knew this day would come..."

Shirou sighed back. "Why did you draw a picture of me?"

"Well...it started out when I happened to see you in the training room a few days earlier. I didn't have any inspiration and was in a complete slump. Then I happened to saw you, and BAM! I suddenly have inspiration again.

"I-I see. And the fan art?"

"Well...originally, it started out as a personal thing. But when Blackbeard came along, he also wanted one and I drew him another one. However, when Mordred came along and found out about it, she also wanted one as well. Then Arturia found about it and wanted one as well. And then-"

"It escalated to the point where her alternate counterparts found out and wanted some as well, which then attracted other people..."

"Y-Yeah..."

"Is that why Arturia and her counterparts, Rin and her counterparts, Sakura and her counterparts, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Luvia, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc and her alter, and Merlin were looking at me funny lately?"

"Y-Yes.."

Shirou was shocked at the news he just received. "W-Wow...can't believe all of this happened..."

"Yes. In fact, it has even gone even further to the point where Merlin would request for fan art and doujinshis of you and any version of Arturia having-"

"Okay! Okay! I get the situation now! Just don't say anything else anymore!" Shirou interrupted with a blush on his face.

After a few seconds of calming down for each other from the statement she was about to say, Osakabehime said, "So...are you mad?"

"About the fan art of me?"

"Y-Yes."

"Well...I'm not mad about it. However..."

"However...?"

"Next time when you're drawing someone, make sure to ask the person's permission. Okay?"

"Okay..."

Shirou smiled. "Good. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get going, so see you Osakabehime."

Shirou then left the room, leaving Osakabehime alone in her room.

"Emiya Shirou...he seems to be a nice guy..." Osakabehime thought with a smile as she was glad that she didn't get in trouble.

However, another thought came to her.

"Ah! I forgot to ask him for his autograph!"

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Omake

Shirou was walking down Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business.

It was then that he found a piece of paper lying down on the ground.

Shirou sighed. "Did Osakabehime forgot to pick up one of her drawings again? Well...guess I'll pick it up and return it to her..." he thought as he walked over to the piece of paper.

However, as he picked up the fan art, he noticed something.

The art style was different. And what's more, the fan art itself was himself and Jeanne D'Arc Alter together.

And the signature on the bottom had her name on it.

"That signature...don't tell me..."

It was then that Jeanne D'Arc Alter came in, huffing for breath with a blush on her face as she saw Shirou holding the artwork she did.

"Uh Jeanne D'Arc Alter...by any chance...is this-"

In an instant, Jeanne D'Arc Alter came up to him, snatched the fan art from him, and said, "Don't...say...a word...about this...got it?" in a menacingly tone.

"Y-Yeah..."


	26. Sleeping Problems

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter may be a bit OOC.

Even though Fujimaru Ritsuka has successfully saved humanity, it wasn't an easy journey.

Especially with the mental trauma that came with it afterwards.

While his actions did save humanity in the end, it came with a huge cost.

The mentality of his soul.

Because while clearing the singularities did save humanity, it didn't save the innocent people included in them.

And it still haunted him.

Not only that, but the deaths of Olga Marie Animusphere, Romani Archaman, and the many other master candidates and members of Chaldea still haunt him to this day.

Even now, he still has nightmares about their deaths...

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_"Why did you let us die..."_

_"Why didn't you save us..."_

_"You can't save humanity, no matter what you do..."_

_"You should have died in that explosion Lev created..."_

_"Why did you live when others better than you died..."_

Ritsuka woke up from his nightmare with a gasp as he immediately rose from his bed, grasping his bed sheets tightly. Beads of sweat were coming down his head as he was trying to calm himself down from the nightmare he just received. "Another nightmare again..." he thought as he laid down on the bed. As he was laying down on the bed, he stretched one of his hands and raised it into the air. "Director...Dr. Romani...everyone..." he thought as he tried to go back to sleep.

However, this would be proven useless, because no matter how long time has passed or what technique Ritsuka would use to go to sleep, it would fail, and he would struggle trying to go to sleep.

Ritsuka sighed as he knew he was not going to experience a good night's sleep tonight. "Well, guess it's another rough night for me...maybe I'll go to one of the vending machines to get a drink..." he thought as he got out of bed and left his room...

_(The next day...)_

"Senpai. Senpai. It's time to wake up," Mashu said as she was knocking on the door of Ritsuka's room.

"Mmmnh...I'll be there Mashu. Just give me a moment..." Ritsuka moaned as he got out of bed and put on his Chaldea uniform. As he opened the door, Mashu was greeted with a sight she thought she would never see.

Ritsuka looked horrible. His hair was in a complete mess and his eyes looked very sore.

"S-Senpai?! Are you okay?! You don't look so good..." Mashu exclaimed as she was in shock of the state Ritsuka was in.

"Hm? Oh...yeah. Just a rough night. That's all," Ritsuka replied as he was rubbing his forehead for comfort.

On the contrary, Ritsuka felt like he could use an energy drink right now. His body felt so sluggish and sore at the same time and his head feels like it was splitting apart and has needles piercing through it.

Mashu looked at him worryingly. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I'm fine Mashu."

"Well...if you say so..."

Rituka and Mashu then went to the cafeteria. As they were walking, Ritsuka felt like his body was sore in some areas. "Wow. Last night was probably one of the roughest nights I ever had in quite a while..." he thought.

Eventually, both Ritsuka and Mashu arrived at the cafeteria. As they were walking in the cafeteria, they were noticed by multiple servants. Mostly because of the look Ritsuka was giving.

However, the one that noticed it the most was Shirou and Archer/EMIYA.

"Master, are you okay?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah, you look like you haven't slept well," Archer/EMIYA said.

Ritsuka sighed. "I'm fine you guys. I just had a bad night. That is all."

"I see..."

"Yeah. Anyways, can I have some breakfast now?"

"Sure," Shirou said.

As time passed on, Ritsuka was going through his day like normal. He also hoped that tonight he would have a good night's sleep...

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Few weeks have passed, and Ritsuka still hasn't got a good night's sleep.

If anything, his condition has gotten even worse.

And it was starting to worry the servants.

Especially for a certain someone...

"Hey Shirou-san, do you think something is wrong with senpai?" Mashu asked.

"You think so too Mashu?" Shirou replied.

"Yes. Recently, he looks like he been lacking sleep and is struggling with something. Not only that, but there were times where he looks like he was about to pass out."

"I see. Now that you mention it, there were times where I would see him late at night at one of Chaldea's vending machines."

"Do you think he's having problems with something?"

"Probably. Want to ask around where he is?"

"Y-Yes!"

Shirou and Mashu then asked around the servants in Chaldea where Ritsuka was. However, they all said that they haven't seen Ritsuka anywhere. Not only that, but they also checked the places were Ritsuka would be, but to no avail, he wasn't in any of the places as well.

"Well, we're out of places of where master would go to," Shirou said as he and Mashu were walking down in Chaldea's hallway. "What should we do?"

"Well...we could try his room. It's the last place he would go to."

"Good idea Mashu."

Shirou and Mashu then went to Ritsuka's room. As they arrived on the front door, Mashu then knocked on the door. "Senpai? Are you there?" Mashu asked from the other side of the door.

There was no response.

"Senpai? If you don't mind, I'm coming in now..." Mashu said before she and Shirou then went into Ritsuka's room. As they went inside, what they saw surprised them.

Inside the room was multiple empty cans of juice lying down on the floor. Alongside the mess of cans was Ritsuka sleeping without the bed sheets over him.

"W-Wow...this mess here..." Shirou said.

"Senpai...so that's where you were..." Mashu muttered as she was looking at him sleeping. She the covered him up with the bed sheets. "Jeez...I told you that you weren't fine...especially when I saw you a few weeks ago..."

Shirou was worried after hearing Mashu's words. "What happened a few weeks ago? I mean, between you two?"

"Well...I was greeting senpai earlier...and when I saw him, he didn't look so good..."

"I see...how bad did he look?"

"Well...his hair was messy, and his eyes were red..."

Shirou sighed. "Sounds like he wasn't able to get some sleep last night..." he thought.

"Shirou-san, do you have an idea of what's going on with senpai?"

"Yeah. And I think I have the solution for it."

"Really?"

"Yeah. For now, let's just wait until master wakes up," Shirou said.

_(A few hours later...)_

"Mmmnh...mmmmnh..."

"Senpai?"

"Mmmmnh...Mashu?" Ritsuka moaned.

Mashu gave him a smile. "Good afternoon Senpai. Had a good nap?"

"Y-Yeah..." he muttered as he was rubbing his eyes. As he got a better look at his surroundings, he saw both Mashu and Shirou in his room. "S-Shirou?"

"I take it you had a good nap master?"

"Y-Yeah..." Ritsuka replied with a yawn.

"Well then...do you mind if I ask you something?"

Ritsuka was confused about what Shirou said, but he continued. "Sure. What is it?"

"Have you been having sleeping problems lately?"

For a moment, there was silence in the room. Ritsuka then broke the silence by saying, 'W-What are you talking about?"

Shirou sighed. "Don't play dumb with me. Considering what's going on with you today, I have a guess that you're experiencing sleeping problems."

"R-Really? Do you have any evidence?"

"Yes. Your recent actions, your facial features, and...the amount of empty juice cans lying around in your room."

Ritsuka gulped as he knew that there was nothing he can't hide from Shirou. Especially with all the evidence that was shown against him.

"I can't hide something from you, can I?" he muttered.

Shirou nodded.

Ritsuka sighed. "Fine I'll tell you what's bothering me lately."

Shirou and Mashu listened to what Ritsuka has to say.

"Well...I've been having nightmares about my past in Chaldea?"

"Your past in Chaldea?" Shirou said.

"You may not know this Shirou, but before you and the other servants arrived here, I wasn't the only master here."

"What do you mean?"

"You see, there were originally 48 master candidates and a lot more members in Chaldea than what you are seeing right now. However, due to Lev's betrayal and actions, all of those master candidates died and reduced Chaldea's staff into what it is now."

"I see...I didn't know that."

"Yeah. And what's more, the first singularity me and senpai went to, practically everyone over there died. There were no survivors as everything was burning. What's more, at the end of that singularity, Lev revealed his true colors and killed off Olga Marie Animusphere, who is the director of Chaldea," Mashu said.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Afterwards, me and Mashu cleared out every singularity and ended up facing Solomon, the king of mages," Ritsuka said

Shirou was shocked to hear this. "Solomon?! The king of mages?! You went up against him?!"

Ritsuka nodded with a smile on his face.

"Wow. So, what happened?"

"Well I won...but..."

"But what?"

Ritsuka let out a sigh before continuing. "During the battle against Solomon, Doctor Romani, a friend of ours, gave his life in the process."

"I see. So how are these events related to your problem?"

"Well...I've been having nightmares about their deaths," Ritsuka said with a sigh. "Even though it's been a long time since that battle, I should have moved on with my life, but I guess...their deaths still haunt me to this day..."

"Master..."

"Senpai..."

"And the problem is that every time whenever I try to sleep, sometimes I hear their voices haunting me, telling and cursing me about how I survived while others didn't."

"And that's why you weren't able to sleep recently?"

"Yeah. Not only that, but during the singularities, it felt like I ended up killing a bunch of people because a singularity is kind of like a world, and fixing a singularity means erasing it from the timeline, including the innocent people living in there as well..."

Shirou was shocked to hear this from Ritsuka. "Jeez, I-I never knew about this..."

"I can't blame you. Trust me, it's a lot for me to take in too. In fact, I'm still trying to process all of the stuff that I did..." Ritsuka said with a sigh.

For a moment, everyone in the room was quiet after what Ritsuka just said.

Then Shirou said something to break the silence.

"Um master...excuse me for saying this, but aren't you blaming yourself unfairly over this?"

Ritsuka was confused with what Shirou just said. "What do you mean by that?"

"Let me ask you this. Were the deaths of the Olga, Romani, and the others was your fault?"

"Well no, but..."

"Then there's your answer then. Don't blame yourself for things that were out of your control. Trust me, you may feel like it's your fault that those people died, but it's not. If anything, they don't want you to feel down or have bad dreams about this."

"You think so?"

"Yeah."

Ritsuka and Mashu were in awe over how much insight Shirou had on this topic.

"Uhm...I'm not being rude or anything...but how do you know so much about this topic Shirou-san?" Mashu asked.

"Welll...let's just say...I have experience dealing with this..."

"How so..."

"Well...it's not an easy story, but do you want to hear it?"

"Yes," Ritsuka and Mashu said in unison.

Shirou let out a sigh before saying his experience. "Well, you all know about me being a magus during my time as a human correct?"

"Yes."

"Well, before I became a magus, let's just say...I experienced hell..."

Ritsuka and Mashu were surprised with what Shirou just said. "What do you mean you experienced hell Shirou-san?"

Shirou let out another sigh before continuing. "Before I became a magus, I was just a normal kid, living a normal lifestyle. However, a certain incident called "The Great Fuyuki Fire" happened and completely took everything from me. It destroyed a portion of Fuyuki. I was the only survivor of that incident."

"The only survivor?! Of an event like that?!" Mashu said.

"Yeah."

"How did you survive?!"

"My adoptive father found me from the rubble. After that is...well, you know."

"I see..."

"Yeah. Ever since then, I used to have nightmares about that incident, and it would haunt me sometimes, even now."

"Wow. So that's how you know about my problem..." Ritsuka said.

"Yeah."

"Uhm...thanks for the advice Shirou-san," Mashu said.

"Yeah. If it wasn't for you, I would be still having these problems now."

Shirou smiled. "No problem. Now if you'll excuse me, I got to go to do something. So, I'll see you later," he said as he got out from the chair he was sitting on. He then left Ritsuka's room, leaving Ritsuka and Mashu alone together.

"Shirou-san sure knows his stuff huh?" Mashu said.

"Yeah. Thanks to him, I think I can finally get a good night's sleep for once."

Mashu smiled. "You may, but there's one thing you need to do first before you can get one."

"And what's that Mashu?"

Mashu then pointed at the empty cans of juice and said, "You might need to clean this mess up."

Ritsuka sighed. Guess that good night's sleep will wait later...


	27. Shirou Meets Shirou

Shirou was eating a meal by himself in Chaldea's Cafeteria.

It was then that a certain servant came into the room.

"Hey, is this seat taken?" the person said.

Shirou stopped eating and looked at the person that was talking to him. He saw a tanned-skinned youth with white hair like silver in a ponytail and with dark ageless golden eyes. He was wearing clothing that is a mixture of traditional samurai outfit with European influence. It was a jinbaori-style haori with Christianity crosses decorated on them along with a traditional umanori hakama with shin guards which had cloth straps that were used to tie the shin guards attached to his lower legs and a collar shirt underneath his kimono and a cravat-tied around his collar. He was also carrying a box.

All and all, he looked like he was from feudal Japan.

"Nope. That's seat free. You can take it if you want," Shirou replied.

"If that's the case, then I'll be sitting here then."

"If you wish."

The person then sat on the empty seat in front of him and placed the box on the table. As Shirou continued eating his meal, the person then said something.

"By any chance, are you Emiya Shirou?"

Shirou stopped eating and said, "Yes. How do you know me?"

The person cleared his throat before saying, "Sorry for not introducing myself earlier. My name is Amakusa Shirou Tokisada."

Shirou was speechless for a moment before saying, "Amakusa Shirou Tokisada? The leader of the Shimabara Rebellion?"

"Yes. I take it that you know me then."

"Yeah. You were recorded in history books throughout of Japan's history. In fact, there's even a statue of you right now."

"I see...guess after my death, I was well known then."

"Yes. Although I guess the history books were quite inaccurate about how you look. Considering that well...you're in front of me now...and the history books drew you looking like a Japanese person...which is way different than what you look like now."

Amakusa Shirou chuckled. "I can't blame you. History tends to be a bit incorrect in some areas..."

"You have no idea," Shirou said as he remembered the first time he found out that the King of Knights was a woman. "Anyways, how do you know me?"

"Well...it seems master accidently mistook me for you apparently..." he said as he thought back to what happened earlier...

_(A few minutes earlier...)_

Amakusa Shirou was walking in Chaldea's hallway, heading towards the room where Ritsuka was. As he arrived at the room, he said, "You have called me master?"

Ritsuka then apologized. "Sorry, but it seems I called the wrong Shirou."

Amakusa Shirou was confused. "Wrong Shirou? Are you saying there's an alternate version of myself master?"

"Not quite actually. It's just that well, there's another servant that has the same name as you."

"Really? Who is it?"

"Emiya Shirou."

"Emiya Shirou...how come I never heard of him before?"

"Well, he's been working around in some areas of Chaldea and well...other servants that knew him have been keeping him..."

"I see. Then do you mind if I bring him over here?"

"Nope. I just need you to give him something," Ritsuka said as he gave Amakusa Shirou a box. "Here's what you need to give him."

Amakusa Shirou then held the box and said, "Where would Emiya Shirou be so that I can give this to him?"

Ritsuka thought about it and said, "Well...at this time of day...he would be at the cafeteria...try there first."

"Okay master."

And Amakusa Shiou left to find Emiya Shirou...

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's how I knew you," Amakusa Shirou said.

Shirou let out a sigh before saying, "So let me guess this straight. You are here because master mistook you for me by calling out "Shirou?" and he sent you here to give me a box?"

"Yes."

Shirou let out a sigh. "I can't blame you. If anything, I would have probably made the same mistake as well. Since...well...there's another Shirou besides me and you."

Amakusa Shirou was confused. "Another Shirou besides you and me? Who?"

Shirou chuckled. "Well..."

_(A few days ago...)_

"Shirou!" Sitonai said.

"Hm? What is Illya?" Shirou turned around, hearing Sitonai's voice from behind.

However, he did not expect see Sitonai with a white bear next to her.

"Um...Illya...is that..."

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Onii-chan, meet my bear, Shirou. Shirou, meet onii-chan," Sitonai said as she was coming towards him.

"Eh? Oh, uhm...my name is Emiya Shirou. Nice to meet you...Shirou..." he said.

The bear just growled at him softly.

Shirou laughed nervously while thinking, "Since when did Illya got a white bear? And she named it Shirou..."

_(Back to the present...)_

"So, what you are telling me is that there's a white bear in which your little sister has, and she names it Shirou?"

"Yes."

Amakusa Shirou chuckled. "Wow. Guess we now one more person, or rather an animal, to worry about getting our names mixed up."

"You can say that again," Shirou said with a laugh.

"Yeah. Also, I've heard that other servants have been keeping you from master. Do you mind explaining that?"

Shirou chuckled nervously as he heard that. "Well...it's a funny story. Let's just say ever since my arrival in Chaldea, I was doing a lot of stuff with other people. Spending time with Arturia and her counterparts, Rin and her counterparts, Sakura and her counterparts, Illya and her sisters and counterpart, Luvia, my adoptive mom, my dad's counterpart from an alternate universe, my caretaker who happens to be in tiger pajamas, the Knights of the Round, getting along with Archer and his altered counterpart, cooking in the cafeteria, fixing something in Chaldea, testing something for Da Vinci and somehow being a part of her antics, training, being a part of Nero and her counterparts' antics, tutoring Jeanne D'Arc in math, and a lot more."

Amakusa Shirou was surprised with the amount of stuff Shirou was doing in Chaldea, especially the last part. "Tutoring Jeanne D'Arc in math? Are you serious?"

"Yes."

Amakusa Shirou laughed. "That's something you don't see every day. Although that would explain why Jeanne has recently been good at math."

"You know her? Well, besides from textbooks and such."

"Yeah. She was my enemy during a holy grail war I was in."

"I see."

"Speaking of which, how did you end becoming her tutor in math? I'm quite interested in hearing that story."

"Well...it was a request from her. Apparently, she knew me from her alter self in which she took me for reasons I do not know. And apparently, she got the information about me from interrogating her alter self."

"What did she do?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure."

"I see. Anyways, judging by what you just said, it seems like you are a saint to Chaldea with your work over there. Just like me."

"Why thank you. However, there is one thing I want to ask you."

"Sure. What is it?"

Shirou took a small sigh before saying, "Are you a counter guardian by any chance?"

Amakusa Shirou was confused. "Counter guardian? What's that?"

"Well, it's like a servant to humanity itself in layman's terms."

"I see. And no, why?"

"Well, you have features similar of Archer and his altered counterpart."

"Relax. I'm not one of those counter guardians you're talking about. The only reason why my skin and hair is like this was that after my third holy grail war, I spent 20 years in the middle east and my hair is like this because of my incarnation. Because of that, my appearance has been altered."

"I see. By any chance, was your holy grail war was different from mine? Because all I know is that during the third holy grail war in my timeline, the Einzberns didn't summon you."

"Seems like it. Anyways, after the third holy grail war in my time was over, I was adopted by Risei Kotomine."

The last word made Shirou drop his spoon and choked on his food. As he was coughing on the food that was stuck in his throat, Amakusa Shirou grabbed a glass of water and handed it to him.

"Need this?" he asked.

Shirou then grabbed the glass of water and started drinking it. As he drank it, his throat started to feel better. "Sorry you have to see that," he said as he cleared his throat.

"It's okay. Judging by the reaction you had earlier, I take it that you know the surname Kotomine?"

"You have no idea. By any chance do you know Kirei Kotomine?"

"You mean my stepbrother?"

Shirou's eyes went wide at that moment. "Stepbrother?! You're his stepbrother?!"

"Yes."

"Wow. To think that priest has a stepbrother in your version of the holy grail war...this is something I would have never expect..."

Amakusa Shirou looked at Shirou's surprised look and said, "I take it that you and your world's version of my stepbrother didn't get along well huh?"

"That's an understatement. He tried to kill me twice during the fifth holy grail war. Not only that, but he and my adoptive father tried to kill each other during the holy grail war before that. Also, he wanted to use the corrupted grail in my world to end the world just for his own twisted desires of seeing everyone in pain."

This time, Amakusa Shirou was surprised at what Shirou just said. "W-Wow. I know that my brother was twisted, but to think he would try to do this...even I'm baffled."

"Yeah. Was he that twisted in your world as well?"

"Yes. That's why I normally tend to stay away from him any time I see him. In fact, the last time we ever met together was during Risei's death, and that was a long time ago."

"I see. Are you twisted like him, where he would wish for the suffering of others?"

"Nope. I'm not like him."

"Is that so? Then what do you wish for?"

Amakusa Shirou took a deep breath before saying, "The salvation of humanity."

For a moment, there was silence between the two.

Even if the person in front of him is Amakusa Shirou, Shirou was surprised of the dream Amakusa Shirou has.

Because it sounds like the dream he had before.

"Wow. And people thought my dream was crazy and ridiculous..."

Amakusa Shirou was confused with what Shirou just said. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well...my dream as a child was to be a hero of justice."

This time, it was Amakusa Shirou's turn to be quiet.

After all, what kind of dream is to be a hero of justice? Even kids today wouldn't think of something like that.

After a few seconds of silence, Amakusa Shirou chucked at what Shirou said, making Shirou ask, "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," Amakusa Shirou said with a chuckle. "It's just that well...your dream sounds similar to mine. You said you wanted to be a hero of justice, and I wanted salvation for humanity. They both involve saving humans. Not to mention that you act like how I used to be before becoming a servant..."

"You mean when you try to save people during your time alive before becoming a servant?"

"You can say that."

"I see. Now that you mention it, what you did before your time as a servant was similar to what I did. Before I became a servant, I would help people whenever I can during my travels."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

Amakusa Shirou was silent for a moment before saying, "Then let me ask you this. Were there any regrets in the path you have chosen?"

Shirou gave him a resolute answer. "No. There weren't any regrets in the path I have chosen."

"I see..." Amakusa Shirou said before a silence occurred. As the silence occurred between the two, Amakusa Shirou thought, "Emiya Shirou...judging by the conversation we just had...he seems to be like me..."

"Um, is there something wrong?" Shirou asked, snapping Amakusa Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, nothing. Anyways, it was fun having a chat with you Emiya Shirou," Amakusa Shirou replied with a smile on his face as he was getting out of the chair he was sitting on. "I'll be leaving now, so see you later."

"Yeah. See you later Amakusa Shirou."

Amakusa Shirou sighed. "You really don't want to call me by Kotomine, don't you?"

"Sorry, but the surname still haunts me."

"That's explainable. Anyways, see you."

"Bye."

"Bye."

And Amakusa Shirou left the cafeteria. As he was getting out of the cafeteria, he noticed a certain servant waiting for him.

"So, what took you so long?" Semiramis asked.

"Oh nothing. Let's just say...I met someone interesting," Amakusa Shirou replied.

"Really? How so?"

"Well...he reminds me of myself in a way and has the same name as me."

Semiramis let out a chuckle. "Is that so? Another servant that is like you and has the same name as you..."

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Omake

Shirou was walking into Chaldea's cafeteria. As he came in, he noticed Amakusa Shirou eating. He then sat in front of him and said, "Hey Amakusa Shirou."

"Hm? Oh, hey Shirou," he said before he continued eating.

Shirou then sat down and immediately looked down at the dish Amakusa Shirou was eating. He then looked at Amakusa Shirou first, then the dish he was eating, then back to him.

And the dish he was eating was mapo tofu.

Which Kirei Kotomine loved.

"You want some?" Amakusa Shirou asked, noticing the attention to the dish he was eating.

"I'll pass," Shirou replied with a groan. As Amakusa Shirou continued eating his mapo tofu, Shirou thought, "Okay, I heard from Tohsaka that Kirei loves eating mapo tofu in general but is loving mapo tofu a thing in the Kotomine family?!"


	28. I Am A Gundam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: I do not own Mobile Suit Gundam 00. Sunrise does.

"Eh? You want me to test out another new mystic code?" Shirou asked Da Vinci as they were in the testing room of Chaldea.

"Yes. And this time, there's nothing wrong with it." Da Vinci replied.

"Are you sure?" Shirou asked with suspicion in his voice.

"Yes! Unlike the prototype mystic code from earlier, this mystic code doesn't have any problems with the construction! I even double checked it!"

"And why do I need to do it?"

Da Vinci had a smug look on her face. "Call it...payback from earlier."

Shirou didn't know what she meant until he realized he has an unpaid debt to Da Vinci from a while ago. He let out a sigh and said, "Well...if you say so..."

"Yes! Now if you'll let me get the mystic code for a moment..." Da Vinci said as she went to a corner of the training room and brought out the mystic code she was talking about. As she returned to where Shirou was, she presented the mystic code to him.

The mystic code itself was a sword, something that Shirou was familiar with. The sword itself was a one-handed sword in which the blade itself was in a transparent green color with some white on the middle of the blade in a design-like shape. The sword's cross guard along with the grip was in a dark grey and it had what it seems to be exhaust ports on the sides. It has a blue-colored knuckle guard.

All and all, it looked like it was made in the future.

"Is this it?" Shirou asked as he was examining the mystic code/sword.

"Yes. Why? You don't like it?" Da Vinci asked.

"It's not that. It's just that...well...the design looks quite similar to something, but I can't remember what it was..." Shirou replied.

"I see. Anyways, try swinging it around a bit."

Shirou complied to Da Vinci's request and started swinging the sword around. As he swung the sword, he thought, "This sword...the more times I keep swinging it and looking at it, the more familiar it gets. But where have I seen this weapon before?"

"Shirou? Are you okay?" Da Vinci said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh yeah. Sorry Da Vinci, I was in my thoughts for a moment." Shirou replied.

"I see. Anyways, what are your thoughts and feedback on the mystic code/sword?"

"It's a good mystic code/sword, although I can't help but feel like I've seen this before. The problem is, where though."

"Maybe it's just your imagination."

"You think so?"

"Yeah. Anyways, there's more to this mystic code/sword than this."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well...do you see a certain grey button on one of the sides of the cross guard?"

Shirou looked at a sword more closely and saw a small switch on one of the sides of the cross guard. "I see it. So what?"

"Well...press it and see..." Da Vinci said with a mischievous grin so creepy it was actually scaring Shirou a bit.

"O-Okay..." Shirou muttered, not wanting to question even further after seeing that smile of hers. As Shirou pressed it, nothing happened.

"Phew. Guess nothing happened then..." Shirou thought as he sighed in relief. Then he was encased in a bright green light. "On second thought, never mind," he thought as sighed again.

As he was trapped in the bright green light, a new voice was heard.

"Registering biometric DNA. User identity known as Emiya Shirou," the object said in a robotic voice.

"Oh boy. Not this again..." Shirou thought as he felt like he was experiencing the first time he touched that prototype mystic code all over again.

"Accessing user's magical circuits and skills. Inputting data from user's history."

Shirou sighed as he knew what was coming.

The transformation sequence.

"Data input complete. Now commencing transforming sequence."

In an instant, the bright green light engulfed Shirou, completely consuming him for a moment. After a few seconds, the bright green light disappeared, revealing Shirou in a completely new costume.

Right now, Shirou was wearing a white helmet with a v-shaped fin with yellow antennas and a red gem-like thing on the forehead. Each side of the helmet has a green clear piece and has a wing-like shape as well. His face was covered by blue-green glass visor glasses and a white face mask with some grey on the side, two mouth vents, and a red chin. He was also wearing blue torso armor that has yellow vents along with a red upper waist, and a white v-shaped piece at the center. His shoulders were covered by blue shoulder armor followed up by his arms being covered up in white armor with some blue designed to look like elbows with some clear green pieces in the arm joints, and his leg armor has clear green pieces and some grey on their sides along with some armored shoes with red on the bottom. On the back of his waist was white armor along with two protrusions along with two swords on each side of his waist and the skirt armor was in a v-shape with some red in the middle.

However, the most unique thing about the armor Shirou was wearing was what was on his back. On his back was a blue backpack with an intricate design. One the back was an object that looked like a fighter jet connecting two cones along with two large blue and white binders with a mechanism that allowed them to float with hindering the body as well.

Da Vinci was in awe of how the armor looked. "W-Wow...I think I outdid myself this time..." she thought.

"Um...Da Vinci?" Shirou said, snapping Da Vinci out of her thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, sorry Shirou. I was just amazed at how the armor turned out."

"You aren't the only one," Shirou said as he looked at himself in amazement. "By the way, where did you get the design from?"

"Well...I may have been watching a certain anime..." Da Vinci muttered.

Shirou let out a sigh, "What anime was it?"

Before Da Vinci could answer his question, it was then that Ritsuka and Mashu decided to come into the testing room, looking for Da Vinci.

"Da Vinci? Are you here? We need your help for-" Ritsuka said, but immediately stopped at what he saw in the room.

"Sempai? What's wrong...?" Mashu asked, but slowly stopped her voice after seeing Shirou and Da Vinci in the room.

For a moment, there was silence in the room as nobody said a word. Then Ritsuka broke the silence.

"D-D-D-D-D-Da Vinci, is-is-is-is-is-is-is that..." Ritsuka stammered while pointing his finger at Shirou.

"Yes. The person you're seeing in the armor is Emiya Shirou."

In an instant, Ritsuka immediately went for Shirou and started examining him, confusing Shirou greatly.

"M-Master. Is there something wrong?"

"Are you kidding me? There's nothing wrong right now!" Ritsuka said excitedly as he continued looking at Shirou with sparkles in his eyes. "This design...the colors...the face...the weapons! Everything is perfect here Shirou!"

Shirou was even more confused and looked towards Mashu. "Uh Mashu...why is master acting like this?"

"Shirou-san...the mystic code you're using...it seems like it brought back some childhood memories senpai had."

"Really? What kind of memories?"

"Well...senpai would tell me that right after school would be over, he would head straight home and watch his favorite show. "If I remember correctly...the show was called Mobile Suit Gundam 00..."

As Shirou heard that, he immediately mentally face-palmed himself. "So that's why it looked familiar...Mobile Suit Gundam 00...jeez, why did Da Vinci watch that anime earlier?"

"Anyways, is there a problem with it Shirou-san?" Mashu asked.

"Well it's not that...I just hope that Chaldea doesn't get sued by the producers of the show..." Shirou said with a sheepish chuckle.

Da Vinci laughed at what Shirou said. "Relax! They won't know!"

"I hope so..." Shirou thought.

It was then that a notification appeared on Shirou's visor. As he checked what the notification was, it was the technological specs of the mystic code itself.

**Name: 00 Raiser**

**Power Source: 2x GN Drives.**

**Armaments: 2x GN Beam Saber, 2x GN Sword II, GN Sword III, 8x GN Micro Missiles, GN Beam Machine Gun, GN Vulcan.**

**Special Equipment and Features: GN Field, Trans-Am System, Twin Drive System, Trans-Am Raiser, Trans-Am Burst.**

Shirou was surprised at the amound of weapons the mystic code has. "Just how many features does this mystic code have?! GN Field? Trans-Am System? Twin Drive System? Trans-Am Raiser, and Trans-Am Burst? What are those systems? Not to mention all those armaments it came with. Did Da Vinci made this out of boredom or what?" he thought.

"Shirou-san? Are you all right in there?" Mashu said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, I'm fine in here. Most importantly, I'm worried about master here," Shirou replied as he was looking at Ritsuka constantly looking at him like how an otaku would look like an idol.

Da Vinci laughed a bit. "Don't worry. He's like this when it comes to mecha and anything related to it."

"I can see that...anyways, Da Vinci, are we done yet?"

"Oh. We're not done yet," she said with a grin on her face.

"What do you mean by that?"

"You'll see."

It was at that moment that three certain saber-face servants came into the room, with an excited look on their faces.

"Is it true Da Vinci?! Is it true that you actually managed to give Shirou a mystic code that will make him look like us?!" Mysterious Heroine X exclaimed in excitement.

"I want to see Shirou right now. What kind of mystic code did you give him?" Mysterious Heroine X Alter asked.

"Is Shirou in that mech suit over there?!" Mysterious Heroine XX asked as she saw the human-sized 00 Raiser.

Da Vinci let out a smug grin. "Yes, you three. Shirou's right here!" she said as she pointed to him.

In an instant, like Ritsuka from earlier, Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter and XX immediately came up to Shirou and started looking at him in all the places they could find.

"Da Vinci you little genius! I'll pay you back one of these days, but right now, I need to look at what Shirou is wearing!" Mysterious Heroine X thought.

"This armor...these weapons...and that coloring...I like it!" Mysterious Heroine XX thought.

"Could use some black and red...but I'll take it. And plus, these colors suit Shirou better..." Mysterious Heroine X Alter thought.

As the three mysterious heroines were examining Shirou, Shirou turned to Da Vinci and said, "Uh Da Vinci, what's going on?"

"Well...I need some data on the mystic code...and I had a feeling that you may need help using this mystic code...so I called them in! Anyways, have fun with them!" Da Vinci replied as she suddenly dragged Ritsuka and Mashu to a safe part of the testing room, leaving Shirou alone with the mysterious heroines.

"Wait! Da Vinci-" Shirou said, but she was long gone, making Shirou sigh at the predicament he was in. "Well...guess I'm in your care...Arturia..." Shirou said to the mysterious heroines.

Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and XX smiled after hearing Shirou's words. "You sure are," they said in unison.

"So...where do we start?" Shirou asked.

"Well...I guess the basic thing to start would be flying," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

Shirou was surprised with what Mysterious Heroine XX said. "F-Flying?!"

"Yes. And don't worry, it's not as hard as you think Shirou," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Yeah. It's actually easy once you get used to it," Mysterious Heroine X said.

"Well...if you say so..."

Mysterious Heroine XX smiled. "Excellent. Now, let me show you something first," she said before she started to transform. In an instant, she was in her space mech suit. "Okay, now watch how I do it."

Shirou then watched Mysterious Heroine XX, wanting to know what she was about to do. For a few seconds, she was just standing there, doing nothing.

Then she started to float slowly, and then she was in the fair, right above Shirou.

"See? Now you try."

"Uhm...how though?"

"Well...how about you try to imagine yourself flying? That works when I do it."

"Okay then," Shirou said. "Imagine yourself flying..." he thought as he was focusing himself to fly. After a few seconds of concentration, Shirou managed to get himself floating. As he was floating, he exclaimed in excitement. "I did it!"

Mysterious Heroine XX smiled. "Great. Now try to get to the height where I am."

Shirou nodded and tried to go fly to where Mysterious Heroine XX was. However, he was having a hard time controlling his movements as he floated around before finally managing to reach where Mysterious Heroine XX was.

"Okay. Now try to follow me," Mysterious Heroine XX said as she started to move in a direction. Shirou soon followed her as well. As the two were flying, Mysterious Heroine X and X Alter looked at them in jealously.

_"Even though she may be me from the future, that doesn't give her the right to float around that much with Shirou! I want to do that too!"_

_"When is it my turn...I want to teach Shirou next..."_

Meanwhile, Da Vinci was getting some data from the flight test. "Hm, Shirou seems to get the hang of flying. Now let's see if he can do some tricks..." She then went over to the speakers and spoke to Mysterious Heroine XX and Shirou. "All right then, Mysterious Heroine XX, get Shirou to land on the ground."

"As you wish Da Vinci. You heard her Shirou," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

"Got it."

Mysterious Heroine XX then headed towards the ground and proceeded to deaccelerate, landing safetly towards the ground.

"Okay, let's see if I can do the same thing..." Shirou thought as he started to head towards the ground. However, he realized something.

He doesn't know how to decelerate.

Which meant he was at that moment a speeding bullet heading towards the ground.

What's more, he was heading towards Mysterious Heroine XX.

"OH NONONONONONONO! ARTURIA, GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Shirou warned her.

"Shirou-?!" Mysterious Heroine XX's eyes widen as she saw Shirou heading towards her. In an instant, there was an impact as his body slammed right into her, followed up with some dust and rubble from where the two collided.

"SHIROU! MYSTERIOUS HEROINE XX!" Everyone in the room exclaimed and went to where the crash happened as they were worried about the safety of the two servants.

However, as the dust settled, what they saw was completely different from what they imagined.

In the center of the mini crater, Mysterious Heroine XX still had her armor on and was holding onto Shirou with her hands on his head and was holding him at her chest area.

"Ow...Shirou, are you okay?" Mysterious Heroine XX asked.

"Yeah...how about you?" Shirou replied.

"I think I'm fine..."

"Well that's a relief..."

Mysterious Heroine X and her counterpart, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci sighed in relief. "Well, at least they're safe," Ritsuka said.

"You can say that. I thought they were going to get hurt over there. Good thing their armors protected each other," Mashu said.

"You can say that. Although we now have an issue to deal with..." Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"What is it?" Da Vinci asked.

"Well...for starters...get Shirou off of you, older me!" Mysterious Heroine X said to her older version.

However, Mysterious Heroine XX ignored her, infuriating her younger version and her altered counterpart even further.

Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci sighed at the sight in front of them. "Oh boy..."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For the next few days, Shirou was practicing in the testing room with Mysterious X, X Alter, and XX about the basics of flying and how his mystic code works. Mysterious Heroine XX would teach him how to fly while X and X Alter would teach him how to use the weapons themselves.

While Shirou didn't mind the additional training he was receiving from Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and XX, it created some situations that would confuse him.

For example, every time whenever Shirou comes out of the room with Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and XX in tow, the first thing they would do is to cling onto Shirou whenever he goes. In addition to that, every time whenever they would pass by any of the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Luvia, Neros, and Jeannes, Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and XX would have a smug look on their faces and cling onto Shirou, making them jealous.

Another thing he hadn't encountered for was how much attention Ritsuka was giving to him. For example, he would always show up in the testing room every time Shirou and Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and XX would test out the mystic code.

Speaking of which, so far, they have learned many things.

First was that all of its functions was powered by thought. For example, if Shirou wanted to shoot the missiles, then he can think to do so.

Second was the fact that the GN Swords II, III, and beam saber can emit a beam like how the Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and XX's weapons can do.

For some reason, they seemed extremely happy about that, and Shirou has no clue why.

Right now, Shirou, Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, XX, Ritsuka, and Mashu were in a singularity cleaning up some enemies. As Shirou pulled out his GN Sword III and started slashing some enemies down, Mysterious Heroine X did the same as well.

"How's the sword Shirou?" Mysterious Heroine X asked.

"It seems fine, although I'm still surprised at how Da Vinci managed to create such a thing," Shirou replied as he slashed an enemy down.

"You're telling me. Even me, my altered self, and older self are still surprised at what she just made," Mysterious Heroine X said as she slashed an enemy down with Secret Calibur. "But it does look good on you Shirou..."

"Hey. Unaltered me, we need hurry up with the enemies here so we and Shirou can get to where master is," Mysterious Heroine X Alter interrupted.

"On it," Shirou and Mysterious Heroine X said in unison.

Shirou and Mysterious Herione X and X Alter soon then cleaned up the enemies in their area and headed towards where Mysterious Heroine XX Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu were. As they arrived, they saw that they had their enemies defeated too.

"So, I take it that everyone here is defeated master?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah," Ritsuka replied as he was gasping for breath. "All now we have to do is finish the dragon that's in the cave..."

"I see...is everyone ready here?"

"Y-Yes!" Mashu said.

"Yes!" Mysterious Heroine X and XX said.

"Yes," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"All right then, let's go," Shirou said.

The group of master, demi-servant, and servants then headed towards a cave where the source of the singularity was.

However, as they arrived, there were received with a giant roar from the cave.

"Incoming!" Shirou yelled out.

Mashu then when in front of them and activated her shield, blocking the roar that came from the cave. As the roar ended, the giant dragon revealed itself from the cave it was hiding in.

"Is everyone all right?!" Mashu exclaimed.

"Yeah. Everyone else?" Ritsuka said.

"I'm okay," Shirou replied.

"Me too," Mysterious Heroine X said.

"Me three," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Good. Looks like all we have to do is kill that dragon then," Ritsuka said with confidence. However, at that moment, a bunch of dragons appeared out of nowhere, rendering Ritsuka's hopes moot. "Or not..."

Mashu sighed. "Mysterious Heroine XX-san, can you take Shirou with you and take out the dragons?"

Mysterious Heroine XX grinned. "With pleasure! Come on Shirou!" she said as she started to fly into the air.

"W-Wait!" Shirou said as he started flying as well.

"Hey!" Mysterious Heroine X said. "No fair!"

"X, now's not the time to argue. We need to kill the dragon first or else it'll kill us," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said as she drew Cross Calibur.

"Tch...you have a point there..." Mysterious Heroine X muttered as she drew Secret Calibur. "Well, time to kill off the dragon to ease my rage!"

X and X Alter then went for the dragon. Meanwhile in the air, Shirou and Mysterious Heroine XX were fighting off the hordes of dragons coming towards their way.

"Jeez...there's too much of them..." Shirou thought as he struck down a dragon. "Is there any way to finish this faster...wait...that's it!"

Shirou then started to fly away towards where Mysterious Heroine XX was, surprising her when he grabbed her and started to fly away from the dragons."

"Shirou?! What are you doing?! Aren't we supposed to kill the dragons?! Mysterious Heroine XX exclaimed.

"That's the thing. I have an idea..." Shirou said as he whispered into her ears. As he whispered his plan to her, Mysterious Heroine XX's eyes brighten up immediately.

"I see! So that's your plan!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah. Can you distract them?"

Mysterious Heroine XX grinned. "Yes!"

Mysterious Heroine XX then headed towards where the dragons were and started distracting them. Meanwhile, Shirou was charging his GN sword III. As he was doing that, he started speaking telepathically to Ritsuka.

_"Master."_

_"Shirou?"_

_"Master, I'm planning a huge attack to finish all of the dragons at once. Once Arturia gives you the signal, tell the others to retreat."_

_"And what kind of signal would that be?"_

_"I'll tell you when the time comes. For now, tell the others to distract the giant dragon on the ground."_

Ritsuka gulped at what the signal was going to be as he waited until Shirou gave him the signal. "Everyone! Shirou's planning to do something to kill off all the dragons! For now, distract them while you can!"

Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and Mashu heard Ritsuka's voice and said, "Yes!" As they were distracting the dragon, every one of them were having thoughts about Shirou's plan.

"What's Shirou planning this time...is it something big or what?" Mysterious Heroine X thought.

"Distracting the dragon at this stage...is Shirou unleashing a huge attack?" Mysterious Heroine X Alter thought.

"What kind of plan does Shirou-san have now?" Mashu thought.

As Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, XX, and Mashu were distracting the dragons, Shirou was still charging his sword. "Come on...almost there...and...yes! I can use it now!" he thought as he was checking his gauge. "Arturia! Now!" he exclaimed to Mysterious Heroine XX.

"All right!" she replied as she soon flew to where the others were. "Hey dragons! Follow me!" As she flew, so did the dragons too as they followed her. Eventually, Mysterious Heroine XX led them to where the others and the dragon was.

_"Master! Now!"_

Ritsuka nodded and yelled out, "Everyone get out of here!"

In an instant, everyone moved away to a safe distance, allowing Shirou to do what he was about to do.

_"I hope this works..."_

***Cue Trans Am Raiser OST***

Shirou then raised his arm that was connected to the GN sword III. "TRANS AM RAISER!"

In an instant, Shirou turned pink and a giant pink beam came from the GN sword III that was several kilometers long. As Ritsuka and the others saw the giant beam coming from Shirou, they were in shock at what he just unleashed.

"Holy shit! That is one big beam! Is this what Shirou was planning for?!" Mysterious Heroine X thought.

"That beam...it looks so pretty..." Mysterious Heroine X Alter thought.

"Wow...Shirou, you certainly have surprised me today..." Mysterious Heroine XX thought.

"Awesome..." Ritsuka thought.

"Is this what Shirou-san was going for...?" Mashu thought.

Shirou then swung his sword at the group of dragons horded together. As he swung his sword, the giant beam came over too, incinerating the dragons immediately, including the main one. Some of the dragons who survived immediately left out of fear of the weapon Shirou used. As the dragons left, the beam disappeared and left Shirou panting.

"So...that was the Trans Am Raiser...just what kind of power does this mystic code have...Da Vinci...just what have you created...or rather copied?" Shirou thought.

"Shirou! Are you okay?" Ritsuka yelled out, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I just feel a little drained..."

"No kidding. After what you just, I'm not surprised. Anyways, can you come down for a moment?"

"Sure."

Shirou then floated down to where Ritsuka and the others were. However, it was at that moment that the mystic code shut down, releasing Shirou from the armor...and made him pass out and nearly fall to the ground if it wasn't for Mysterious Heroine X, X Alter, and XX catching him at the last moment.

"Shirou/Shirou-san?!" Ritsuka exclaimed.

Mysterious Heroine X checked on Shirou and said, "He's fine master. He's just exhausted."

"Yeah. For now, just let him sleep," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"After all, he did unleash a huge beam attack after all," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

"Well, if you say so," Ritsuka said.

The three mysterious heroines then looked at Shirou with a single thought in their minds and a smile on their faces.

_"Shirou, you truly have become one of us..."_

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Omake

"Hey Da Vinci, can I ask you something?" Ritsuka asked.

"Sure. What is it?" Da Vinci replied.

"Well...can you create another mystic code like the one you gave to Shirou earlier?"

"Well...I can, but why?"

Ritsuka was silent before exclaiming, "I WANT TO BE A GUNDAM TOO!"

Da Vinci looked at Ritsuka in shock. "What?"


	29. Shirou Meets Arthur

"Hey you. You wouldn't happen to be Shirou, aren't you?" A voice said.

Shirou sighed as he knew where that voice came from. "What it is now Merlin?"

As he turned around, he expected to see Merlin and his smug grin on his face. However, instead of Merlin, the person that called him out looked like a male version of Arturia with a few differences. One of which was the armor scheme in which while it looked similar to Arturia's armor, it had a few differences in which the colors were a bit off, there weren't any armor guards on his hands, the design on his chest armor was different, and there was a hood on the back that he was wearing.

"Who are you? You look like Arturia, but different at the same time..."

"Are you talking about my female counterparts?" the voice said.

Shirou was shocked to hear that. "Female counterparts?! Wait, does that mean...?!"

The person cleared his throat and said, "I suppose introductions are in order, are they?" as he unhooded himself, revealing his face. "Please to meet you Shirou, my name is Arthur Pendragon, King of Camelot and the Knights of the Round Table."

Shirou was shocked to hear this. "A male version of Arturia?! And his name is King Arthur?! Well the throne of heroes does connect to all realities of time and space and can summon any heroic spirit over there. But still! Who would have ever thought that there would be a male version of Arturia? Well...guess the history books were actually right for once..." he thought.

"Um...are you okay?" Arthur asked.

"Hm? Oh yeah, sorry. Just thinking about something..." Shirou replied as he shook his head. "My name is Emiya Shirou," he said with a bow.

Arthur raised his hand. "It's nice to meet you Emiya Shirou," he said with a smile.

Shirou raised his hand and grabbed Arthur's hand too. "Yeah. Likewise."

As he and Arthur were shaking hands, Shirou asked him, "But how come you know me?"

Arthur chucked. "Well..." he said as his mind went back to what happened earlier...

_(A few hours ago...)_

Arthur was walking down in Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business. As he was walking down, he noticed Arturia on the table with her head down, moaning about something.

Arthur, being the kind person, decides to check on her to see what's wrong with her.

"My female self, is there something wrong?" Arthur asked Arturia.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing Arthur..." Arturia replied with a moan.

"Are you sure? That tone of yours doesn't seems to support what you're saying."

Arturia let out a sigh. After a few seconds of silence, Arturia decides to speak up. "It's Shirou."

Arthur was confused. "Shirou? Who is Shirou?"

"He's me and my counterparts' scabbard and queen," Arturia replied.

Arthur was surprised at what Arturia just said. "Scabbard? Queen?"

"Yes."

"And Shirou is a man?"

"Yes."

Arthur was surprised to hear this. "Just who is this Shirou that is making my female counterpart like this? And he's a man, yet she calls him his queen...what is the connection between the two?" he thought as he sat down in front of Arturia. "I take it that this Shirou is causing you harm?"

"No. Rather, I'm worried about him."

"What do you mean?"

Arturia let out a sigh. "I'm worried about his safety. Ever since I left him after the Holy Grail War and went to Avalon, my mind hasn't stopped thinking about him. I waited for him for so long in Avalon and then I was summoned here by master. I'll admit, I was sad when I was first brought here since I'll never be able to see him ever again. However, ever since Shirou came here, life has been enjoyable again."

"I see. So how is this making you like this?"

"Well...I worry for his safety because of how much work he does in Chaldea. Even after all those years, he still hasn't changed. However, I fear that he'll overwork himself if he keeps doing it. For example, my Ruler counterpart told me that Shirou fell asleep from nearly overworking himself when he was doing Tristan's job at the casino in Chaldea. What's more, there were times that I fear that I may lose him whenever he would go in a singularity with master without me. Luckily, I can count on my counterparts to make sure he is safe along with Rin and the others. But still..."

"And that's why you're mopping around here? Because you're worried about him?" Arthur asked.

"Well yeah...but that's not the only reason."

"What do you mean?"

Arturia let out a sigh before continuing. "I don't know how he does it, but he somehow attracts the attention of other servants so easily."

"I see...does that make you jealous?"

"Well...it does...a bit," Arturia muttered.

Arthur was silent before thinking, "This amount of emotion from my female counterpart...just how much of an effect does this Shirou have on her?"

After a few moments of silence, Arthur then said, "Do you want me to talk to him about this?"

Arturia looked at Arthur for a moment. "Eh? You? Talking to him?"

"Yeah."

Arturia thought about Arthur's suggestion and said, "All right. But don't scold him too hard though."

"Sure. And what does he look like?"

"Red hair, wears a white kimono, and has a katana on his side."

Arthur smiled. "I got it," he said as he walked out of the room Arturia was in. As he was walking, he thought, "Shirou...just what kind of person are you...?"

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's how I knew you," Arthur said.

Shirou was surprised at Arthur's story. "Arturia, you were that worried about me this whole time...?" he thought.

"Um excuse me, are you okay?" Arthur said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Oh sorry, I was in my thoughts. Anyways, I suppose you're here to talk to me about something?"

"Yes. Do you mind?"

"No. But right here isn't a good place for a conversation. Let's move to a different location, shall we?"

"That I don't mind."

"Okay then, follow me."

Shirou then led Arthur to his room. As the door shut behind them as they went inside, Shirou then sat on his bed while Arthur sat on one of the chairs in his room. "So...what do you want to talk about?" Shirou asked.

"Well...it's about the relationship that you have with my female self. Do you mind explaining what that was about?"

"Well...I was Arturia's master during the fifth holy grail war in my timeline."

Arthur was surprised. "Is that so?"

"Yeah. During her time as my servant, I would...well...always put myself in dangerous situations," Shirou admitted with an embarrassed look on his face. "There were times where I would put myself in certain-death situations in which would always involve getting myself nearly killed."

"I see...and what was the reason for your actions?"

Shirou let out a small sigh before saying, "To protect Arturia from any harm."

For a moment, Arthur was stunned from what Shirou just said. After all, it's usually the servant's job to protect the master. Not the other way round. "Is that so?" he asked in a tone of interest. "Were you a powerful magus at the time?"

Shirou let out a chuckle. "Nope. I was actually a third-rate magus who can't even do a simple spell at the time."

Arthur was surprised. "What? So you were a magus who couldn't even manage to do a simple spell and yet somehow managed to survive the entirety of your holy grail war?"

"Yes. And I won the war as well."

"Really?!"

"Yeah."

Arthur was shocked to hear that someone who was a complete novice in the ways of magecraft managed to survive the entirety of a holy grail war and win at the same time.

What's more, he actually tried to save his servant, and managed to do so.

And it impressed him.

"Wow. That is impressive. In fact, you remind me of my former master," Arthur said with a smile.

"Really?"

"Yeah. She was like you in many ways I can ever imagine."

"Is that so? What was her name?"

"Ayaka Saijou."

"I see..."

For a moment, both sides were quiet because they were trying to figure out what to say to the other. Eventually, Shirou broke the silence.

"You know, I have never expected this to happen," Shirou said.

"What?"

"That I would ever meet a male version of Arturia who happened to be named Arthur," Shirou said with a chuckle.

Arthur then chuckled as well. "Really? Is it really that surprising for you?"

"Yeah. I mean, in my timeline, I found out that "King Arthur" was a girl named Arturia during the holy grail war. At that point, I was in shock of the news I received and even wondered if the history books were lying to me at one point. After the holy grail war was over, I got used to it. However, seeing you here just reignited the shock again because there's a world where King Arthur was actually a man. It's like I've been slapped in the face a bunch of times."

"I can't blame you. I was surprised as well."

"Yeah. Not only that, but apparently, the case goes to Mordred as well. Speaking of which, how is she with you?"

"With Mordred?"

"Yes."

"She's a good girl. Head-strong as well."

"I see. Well, I'm glad that you two are getting along," Shirou said with a smile.

"Your welcome. By the way, get this. Imagine my surprise when I found out that my female's counterpart's Merlin was a male."

Shirou was confused. "What? Can you repeat what you just said again?"

Arthur sighed. "Imagine my surprise when I found out that my female's counterpart's Merlin was a male."

Shirou was even more confused hearing Arthur's statement. "Wait...by any chance...is your world's version of Merlin..." he stammered as he pieced it together.

"Yes. In my world, Merlin is a woman."

Shirou did a spitake. "What?! You got to be kidding me!"

"Trust me. As ridiculous as it sounds, the Merlin in my world was a woman."

Shirou was stunned with what Arthur just said. "Wow. That's something I never expected. And I thought finding out that the Merlin of my world was young was a shock...but this...this is just bizarre."

"Yeah. And what's even more weird is that she has the same voice as my female counterparts."

"A female merlin with the voice of Arturia...somehow, I don't want to imagine that..."

Arthur chuckled. "Yeah. Just imagine what would happen if both of our Merlins meet..."

Both Shirou and Arthur shuddered at thought of it. "Okay, now I don't want to imagine that. Just the amount of pranks those two will make..." Shirou said.

"Me neither," Arthur replied a sigh. "Anyways, there's something else I need to tell you about."

"Okay. What is it?"

Arthur cleared his throat before he was about to say what he wanted to say. "Please try to limit yourself from overworking yourself. I'm telling you this for my female's counterparts' sake. She's worried that you'll overwork yourself and will pass out from exhaustion you know. Even though you may be a servant and can handle yourself now, she's still worried about you. Please."

Shirou thought about what Arthur said and replied, "Okay, I'll try to not overwork myself then."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Arthur smiled. "Good. That's all I can ask for."

Shirou sighed as he let out a sigh to get some air.

"By the way, I have one more question."

"Sure. What is it?"

"Why is it that my female counterparts call you their scabbard and queen?"

Shirou sighed again. "Well, it's a long story..." he said as he began the story about how he was called Queen Shirou and their scabbard...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Arturia was walking in Chaldea's hallway. As she was walking, she saw Arthur. She then stopped him for a moment and started talking to him.

"So, did Shirou get the message?" Arturia asked.

"Yes. He promised that he'll keep himself from overworking for you and your counterparts' sake," Arthur replied with a smile.

Arturia smiled back. "Well that's good."

"Yes. By the way, there was one question that I wanted to ask you."

"Sure. What is it?" Arturia asked.

Arthur cleared his throat before saying, "How did you and Shirou meet?"

Arturia smiled. "Well..." she said as she as she began to start telling the story.


	30. Arrrival of the Swordswomen (Part 1)

_Emiya Shirou is well known by various servants in Chaldea._

_For the Arturias, he was known as their sheath and queen._

_For the Rins, he was known as Emiya-kun._

_For the Sakuras, he was known as Senpai._

_For the Illyas and Miyu, he was known as Onii-chan._

_For Astraea, he was known as Sherou._

_For the Neros, he was known as their praetor._

_For the Jeannes, he was known as their helper. In Jeanne D'Arc's case, he was her tutor in math. In Jeanne D'Arc Alter's case, he was a subject of interest to help her mess around with Arturia Alter. In Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily's case, he was in charge of making the sweets and tea whenever she would have a tea party with her friends, which included his little sisters._

_For the Knights of the Round, he was known as Queen Shirou. Especially in Mordred's case in which he was known as her mother._

_For Merlin, he was known as his source of entertainment like the Knights of the Round, Queen Shirou._

_For Irisviel Von Einzbern, he was known as her adoptive son._

_For Kiritsugu, he was known as his adoptive son from an alternate universe._

_For Jaguar Man, he was known as her main source of food (along with EMIYA as well.)_

_For EMIYA and EMIYA Alter, he was known as a possibility in which what could have happened had they chose a different path._

_For Da Vinci, he was known as her test subject for her many shenanigans._

_For Cu Chullainn, he was known as kid._

_For Medusa, he was known as Shirou._

_For Medea, he was known as boy._

_For Archer Gilgamesh, he was known as Faker._

_And now, Emiya Shirou is going to earn some new nicknames..._

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was in the training room, working on his magecraft as he was tracing another sword.

_"Judging the concept of creation..."_

Shirou raised his hand and began tracing the weapon that appeared in his mind.

_"Hypothesizing the basic structure..."_

Moments later, a bright light appeared in front of him.

_"Duplicating the composition material... Imitating the skill of its making..."_

In an instant, a katana appeared in his hand. It was steel made; however, the handle was made of lesser, yet durable metal. As he glanced at it even further, he noticed that there were no signs of degradation from the moment he projected an object of any kind.

"Well, seems like this weapon from can't disappear for a while...guess fusing with Muramasa does influences my magecraft...let's do a few more tests to confirm that theory..." he thought as he looked at the traced sword even closer.

As so, Shirou then started a frenzy of tracing weapons. As time passed on, the area around him was filled with swords he traced, and they all carried the same result as the first sword he traced earlier.

"Okay, it's settled. Judging from the pile of weapons, it appears that my magecraft has improved since then..." Shirou thought as he looked at the weapons that were traced in front of him.

However, as he looked at the number of weapons he just traced, he realized something.

He traced too many swords.

Probably enough to supply a small army at least.

"Wow...guess I went a bit overboard with my magecraft a bit...just what am I going to do with all of them..." he thought.

However, it was then that two certain saber-face servants were coming to the room Shirou was in.

"Hey! Slow down here alter me!"

"I can't. I need to see him for something."

As Shirou was looking at the pile of swords in front of him, he then heard the voices outside and turned around to see what was going on.

As he turned around, in front of him were two servants at the doorway. One of the servants looked like Arturia, but has light pink hair and was wearing a chikai no haori and long leather boots. On her waist was a katana and its sheath. The other servant was like her, but her hair was longer and was white, back at either side with red tassels. She wears a red and black dress that looks like a mix to a short kimono and long European style coat, complete with a high collar held closed by a rope tassel. She appears to wear long stockings. Unlike the servant next to her, her skin was dark. And the katana along with the sheath she was holding was really long.

Shirou looked confused at the girls because they resembled Arturia. "Excuse me, can I help you?"

"Yes. Are you the blacksmith known as Emiya Shirou people have been talking about?" one of the servants asked.

Shirou was confused. "Blacksmith? Me? Well technically I did fuse myself with Sengo Muramasa...but still, a blacksmith? Where did that come from?"

The other servant then bowed apologetically. "Sorry, but my alter self seems to jump to the conclusion about things like this easily. Please forgive her."

"N-No problem," Shirou said as he got up from the ground he was sitting on. "So, who are you two?"

The servant cleared her throat and said, "My name is Okita Souji. And the person on my left is my alter, Okita Souji Alter."

Shirou was surprised to hear this. "Okita Souji?! That's Okita Souji?! The captain of the First Unit of the Shinsengumi?! That Okita Souji?! And the person next to her is her alter?! I know I should probably get used to it by now, but why do they look like Arturia?!" he thought.

"Are you okay?" Okita asked, breaking Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Y-Yeah. Just something got caught in my mind."

"I see. Anyways, my name is Emiya Shirou."

"I see...then let me ask you this Shirou-san. Is it true that you carry the spirit of Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith?"

"Yes, but why are you asking me this?"

"Well-" Okita tried to say, but her altered counterpart stopped her.

"I want a new sword," Okita Alter said.

Shirou was confused. "Huh? A new sword?"

"Yes."

"But why? Isn't the one you're holding okay?"

"It's fine, but I want to try wielding a new weapon sometimes."

"I see...just one question. Why are you asking me this? And why do you think that I am a blacksmith?"

Okita let out a sigh and said, "Well...there were rumors among the servants here that you were a blacksmith capable of making any weapon and well...my alter self wanted to see if it was true."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Just what kind of rumors about me have been spread throughout of Chaldea...? Hold on, I don't want to know..."

"Anyways, you seem to have a pile of swords over there. Do you mind if I take a look at them?" Okita Alter asked as she looked at the pile of traced swords Shirou made earlier.

"Sure. I don't mind."

In an instant, Okita Alter then went towards the pile of swords, looking at each sword. As she was doing that, Shirou and Okita were watching the event happening.

"Hey. Sorry for being rude of anything, but is your altered counterpart always like this?"

Okita let out a sigh. "Yeah. From what I heard, she's like this because of her connection to the counter force."

Shirou was surprised for a moment. "Counter force?"

"Yeah. You heard of it?"

"Yeah."

"I see. Anyways, she's like this because of the counter force she connected to. Not only that, but there are even some things I don't even know about her. For example, when I asked what she dislikes, she said that she participated in a raffle and didn't win anything. She stated that "drawing nothing but blanks was really mortifying in reality.""

"Is that so..." Shirou said as he was surprised with what he just heard.

"Yeah."

Meanwhile, Okita Alter was going through the pile of traced swords Shirou made earlier. As she was going through them, she was marveled at the craftsmanship of them all.

"This number of swords...and their beauty...it's so hard to choose which one is good because all of them are so good..." she thought as she went through each of Shirou's traced swords. As she kept looking at them, there was one in the pile that caught her attention. She then grabbed it and looked at it. The sword Okita Alter was looking at was a moderately curved nodachi with a white edge and a distinct blue hamon that has the appearance of flames. Its tsuba is golden and shaped like a rounded cross pattée; the hilt is wrapped reddish-brown, with a golden clasp around its middle and a golden kashira pommel.

As Okita Alter looked at it closely, she saw the details of the katana and saw its beauty. "This nodachi...it's so pretty...I want it..." Okita Alter then went back to where Shirou was and asked, "Do you mind if I test this out?" while holding the nodachi in her hands and her eyes had some sparkles in them.

"Um...sure..." Shirou replied awkwardly.

"Yes!" Okita Alter thought as she then proceeds to head towards to the area of the room where the training dummies were. When she got to where the training dummies were, she then began to start slashing the training dummies with the borrowed traced katana. As she did, the dummies were cut into half immediately. She smiled at the results of the test as she looked at the nodachi in her hand.

She then went back to where Shirou was and asked him, "Can I keep this?"

Okita mentally facepalmed herself and said, "Alter me! You can't just ask that to him! It's his weapon!"

Shirou let out a sigh and said, "Sure."

"Really?" Okita Alter asked.

"Really?!" Okita yelled out.

"Yeah. I don't mind," Shirou said with a smile.

"Yay!" Okita Alter said as she looked at the sword again.

"Are you sure about this Shirou-san?" Okita asked.

"Yeah. Don't worry, I can trace another one?"

"Trace? What's that?"

Shirou then raised his hand and said his aria. "Trace on." In an instant, a copy of the weapon Okita Alter was holding appeared in his hand.

Okita and Okita Alter was surprised at what just happened. "Did you do that?!" Okita exclaimed.

"Yes."

"Wow...guess the rumors about you were true..." Okita Alter.

Shirou let out a sigh. "I'm not a blacksmith if that's what you're wondering."

"Eh?! Then what are you then?"

"A magus."

"And all of these swords?"

"A result of the magecraft I specialize."

"Magecraft?"

"Think of it as magic in your terms if you don't understand. You see, the magecraft I specialize in scans the weapon a person is holding and replicates it easily, including the history of it as well."

Okita and Okita Alter was in wonder of what Shirou just told them. "So, all of those weapons..." Okita muttered.

"They were all traced."

"I see. Can you trace ours as well?" Okita Alter asked.

"Yeah," he replied as he started to trace both Okita's and Okita Alter's weapons. As he did, they were appalled as Shirou managed to recreate their swords so easily.

"Wow...to be able to that so easily..." Okita Alter said.

"Yeah..." Okita said as she looked at Shirou's traced copy of her sword. "Speaking of which, do you mind if I take a look at the pile of swords you made?"

"Sure. Why not?"

"Thank you," Okita said as she went to the pile of swords Shirou made. As she inspected each sword Shirou traced, she was in marvel at the quality of each of them. However, as she kept looking, she saw a sword that caught her eye and grabbed it. The sword that she grabbed was a long katana with a black handle and a cross-shaped guard. The blade itself was normal in appearance and its pattern was irregular. "Wow...what Shirou-san has traced here is on par with a master blacksmith of my era...well then again, there were rumors that he's the vessel to Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith..." she thought as she looked at the blade more closely.

Okita then went to the area where the training dummies were. "Let's test these swords out first..." she thought. She then swung the projected katana at the dummies, cutting them down effectively.

"Well?" Shirou asked.

Okita smiled. "It's perfect."

Shirou smiled back. "Glad you like it," he said before he checked the time. "Ah, it seems it's getting close to lunch time, so I'll be heading towards the cafeteria. Do you want to come?"

"Sure," Okita said.

"Yes," Okita Alter said.

"Okay then. Let's go."

Shirou, Okita, and Okita Alter then went to the cafeteria. As they arrived, Shirou saw Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, BB and her sisters, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar man, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter.

As Shirou appeared in front of them, they noticed the two servants next to him.

"Shirou, why is Okita and Okita Alter next to you?" Arturia asked.

"Well-" Shirou tried to explain, but Okita Alter cut him off.

"He's me and my counterpart's personal blacksmith." Okita Alter said as she held onto his hand.

Everyone was silent for a moment from Okita Alter's declaration.

"What?" Shirou said.

"You heard me. You're me and my counterpart's personal blacksmith."

At that moment, the cafeteria went into chaos. "EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!" they exclaimed.

"My alter self! What are you saying?!" Okita said.

"What do you mean?" Okita Alter asked innocently.

"What do you mean?! You can't just call Shirou-san our personal blacksmith!"

"Why not? Aren't you interested in him as well?"

"I-I'm only interested in his swords! Anyways, going back to what I said earlier, you can't just call Shirou-san our personal blacksmith!"

"Yeah! Because he's our scabbard and queen!" Arturia and her counterparts said.

"In fact, what gives you the right to do so!?" Ishtar exclaimed with her counterparts nodding in agreement.

"That's right! You can't just put people in positions like that!" Parvati exclaimed along with BB and her sisters and Kama.

"Onii-chan's getting taken again!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu exclaimed.

"Let go of Sherou this instant!" Astraea exclaimed.

"Shirou! Are you trying to make a harem here?! Jaguar man yelled.

"Oh my...my son has attracted more girls...that means more love interests for him!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly.

Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter didn't say anything.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Just what am I getting myself into...well at least it couldn't get any worse..." he thought.

However, as Shirou's E-rank luck would have it, his situation got even worse.

Because across the hallway, a voice was heard.

"GRAMPS!"

_"That voice..."_

As Shirou turned around, he was greeted with a pink-haired woman coming at him. In an instant, the woman greeted him with a hug as she tackled him to the ground, shocking everyone who saw the event.

"It's been a while gramps!" the woman exclaimed excitedly. I missed you!

It was then that everyone had one thought in mind after seeing the pink-haired woman tackling Shirou with a hug.

_"WHO IS THAT WOMAN?! AND HOW COME SHE ALREADY KNOWS SHIROU/EMIYA-KUN/SENPAI/ONII-CHAN/SHEROU/MY YOUNGER SELF?! AND WHY DID SHE CALL HIM GRAMPS?!"_


	31. Arrrival of the Swordswomen (Part 2)

Shirou was having a weird, or rather normal day.

It all started when he was practicing his magecraft in the training room. That's when Okita and Okita Alter came into the room after hearing rumors of a blacksmith in Chaldea. After giving them traced swords in which they were happy to receive, Shirou then went to the cafeteria along with them in tow.

It was then that Okita Alter declared Shirou as her and her counterpart's personal blacksmith, making the people in the cafeteria angry.

Which included the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Luvia, and Taiga.

And to make things even worse, during the chaos, a pink haired woman came out of nowhere and hugged Shirou while calling him "gramps."

Which led to the situation he was in right now; laying down on the ground as the pink haired woman was hugging him and called him "gramps" earlier.

Not wanting to be rude, Shirou then said something to the pink-haired woman.

"Uhm...excuse me, but I don't know you."

The woman let out a pout. "What?! You don't remember me?! After all what we've been through?!"

Everyone in cafeteria nearly freaked out after hearing those words. "WHAT DID SHE JUST SAY?!" they thought.

"Um...sorry, but I think you got the wrong person."

"Yeah. Who are you?" Okita Alter asked, not wanting to be left out.

"And how come you know Shirou?" Okita asked.

The woman then let go of Shirou and got up. "Gramps! It's me! Miyamoto Musashi!"

Shirou was shocked to hear this along with Okita and Okita Alter. "M-Miyamoto Musashi?! That Miyamoto Musashi!? The strongest swordsman in the history of Japan?! The founder of the Niten Ichi-ryu school of swordsmanship?! That's Musashi?! Okay, now I'm going crazy here!" they thought.

"Gramps?" Musashi asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Huh? Oh sorry," he replied as he got off from the floor. While he was doing that, he noticed Ritsuka and Mashu running towards them. As they arrived, Ritsuka was huffing for breath. "Master, are you all right?"

"Yeah...just...give...me...a few...more seconds..." Ritsuka huffed as he was gasping for air.

Musashi then looked at Rituska and said, "Hey Ritsuka! Why doesn't gramps remember me?"

Ritsuka looked at Musashi sheepishly and said, "Sorry Musashi...but that's not him."

Musashi was in disbelief. "What?!"

"Yeah. The person in front of you looks like gramps, but he isn't."

"Eh!? Then who is this person then?"

"Emiya Shirou, the pseudo-servant vessel to Sengo Muramasa, who you may know as gramps."

Musashi's eyes lit up upon hearing this. "The pseudo-servant vessel to gramps?! Well that's something new! Although why does he look similar to gramps?"

"Master, what's going on?"

"Well..." Ritsuka said as he began to explain what happened earlier...

_(A few hours earlier...)_

Ritsuka was at the summoning alter in Chaldea, waiting to see what kind of servant he would summon today. "What kind of servant I will get today? Maybe an Archer class? Or Saber class? Lancer? Caster? Berserker? Rider? Assassin? Ruler? Or Avenger?" he thought as he placed the saint quartz on the alter. As he did, he then stepped back to let the summoning alter do its magic.

"Senpai? Are you going to be okay this time?" Mashu asked.

"Yes. And this time, I'm not going to rage out from what the summoning system gives me. No matter what happens."

"Well...if you say so..."

At that moment, the summoning alter lit up, making Ritsuka anxious on what he was about to get for today. However, like what happened when he summoned Shirou a while ago, all he kept getting were Craft essences, black keys, mapo tofu, and a bunch of random stuff.

Despite having a calm face, he was slowly dying on the inside from the horrible RNG luck he was having.

"Damn it...it's just like last time...and I only have a few saint quartz left..." he thought as he slumped his head down.

"Senpai?" Mashu asked worryingly.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I'm just a little down."

"Don't worry senpai. The summoning isn't over yet. You might get something good."

Ritsuka looked at Mashu. "You're right! The summoning isn't over yet! There's a few more summons left! I just need to gamble on my own luck!"

Mashu looked at Ritsuka with a smile. "That's the spirit senpai!"

Rituka then went back to the summoning alter, placed the saint quartz there, and went back to where Mashu was. It was then at that moment, the alter lit up, temporarily blinding the two from how bright the light was. The saint quartz then disappeared, then formed into multiple blue orbs. Then the blue orbs started to connect with each other and turned into a ring of blue sparks swirling around. Then the ring split into three and continued to swirl around.

As the light faded, it revealed a silver card showing a knight holding a sword with both hands. However, the card started to cackle as gold sparks moved around the card, turning it into a gold saber class card. The card then disappeared as a woman appeared.

The women had pink hair held up by a wooden black and red hair clip in a ponytail. She was wearing a low-cut blue and red kimono with wide sleeves that had intricate designs on it. The sleeves were kept shut with a simple clasp that allowed her belly to peak out through the folds. Four katanas were strapped onto her waist and her legs were covered in black stockings that were protected by sturdy red and blue leg armor. She opened her eyes; the color of her hair made her light-blue eyes stand out even more.

"Shinmen Musashi-no-Kami Fujiwara no Harunobubu...!? Sorry, let's do that over! Servant Saber, Shinmen Musashi has arrived!" she exclaimed. As she looked down, she saw Ritsuka and Mashu in front of her. "Ah! Ritsuka! Mashu! It's been a while! Who's the girl over there?" she said in an excited tone.

Ritsuka smiled. "Yeah, welcome back Musashi. The person next to me is Mashu Kyrielight."

"N-Nice to meet you Musashi!" Mashu said nervously.

"Nice to meet you too Mashu!"

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Anyways, how were your travels?"

"Well, they were interesting at the most. Fought against a lot of strong enemies here and there, and visited a lot of places," she replied with a smile on her face.

"Were they fun?"

Musashi grinned. "Obviously! Anyways, guess you're my master now huh?"

"Yeah. Welcome to Chaldea. Want a tour around the place?" Ritsuka said.

"Sure!"

Ritsuka and Mashu then gave Musashi a tour of the hallways of Chaldea, showing her the different rooms. However, during the tour, Ritsuka realized something that he forgot untill now.

_"Wait a second...Shirou's here...oh crap! I forgot that Shirou looks like gramps, and considering how Musashi may react to when seeing Shirou...oh boy, this can't be good. Especially with all of the girls that know him...god, the amount of damage the girls will do when they see Musashi with Shirou..."_

"Senpai? Are you okay?" Mashu asked with worry on her face.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm just worried about something..."

"About what?"

"Well...it's nothing that big...but...let's just hope that Shirou isn't around right now..."

"What do you mean by that senpai?"

"Well...just wait and see..."

Mashu was confused when hearing Ritsuka's answer. However, her confusion was quickly forgotten when she continued showing Musashi the rooms in Chaldea. As this continued, Musashi also met some of her friends and they had some quick reunions.

As time passed, nothing bad happened and the tour resumed without any problems. Ritsuka was relieved that nothing bad happened. "Well, guess I have nothing to worry about..."

However, his relief was short-lived.

As they were walking in the hallway, Ritsuka's fears became a reality.

Because in the distance was the doorway to the cafeteria, and Shirou was in front of it with Okita and Okita Alter.

"Gramps...?" Musashi muttered.

_"Oh no! Why is Shirou over there right now?! And with Okita and Okita Alter?! Quick, I need to distract Musashi for a moment!"_

However, in an instant, Musashi quickly left Ritsuka and Mashu and went straight towards where Shirou was, leaving Ritsuka with a groan and Mashu confused again.

"Senpai? What just happened?"

Ritsuka sighed. "Possibly the worst outcome I've ever hoped for!" He then ran towards where Musashi was going for.

"S-Senpai! Wait for me!"

"Gramps is here?! Why didn't Ritsuka tell me this?! Never mind that, he's here!" Musashi thought excitedly.

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's what happened," Ritsuka said.

Shirou was in shock of what just happened. "So, what you're telling me is that earlier, you summoned Musashi and was giving her a tour of Chaldea alongside with Mashu. However, when Musashi happened to see me, she mistook me for Sengo Muramasa because she already met him before in which he has the same face as me and was wearing the same clothes as me?"

"Y-Yes..."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Jeez, I need to talk to Muramasa about this later..."

"Shirou?"

"It's nothing. Anyways, should we talk about this more in detail in the cafeteria?"

"I suppose so," Ritsuka replied.

"Great. How about you Mashu? Musashi?"

"Y-Yes!" Mashu said.

"I'm fine with that," Musashi replied.

"M-Me too!" Okita said.

"Me three," Okita Alter said.

The group of six then went into the cafeteria. As they went into the cafeteria, everyone was staring at them intensely.

However, most of the stares were focused on Musashi, in which she declared that she knew Shirou.

Ritsuka, Mashu, Okita, Okita Alter, and Musashi then sat at a table while Shirou went behind the counter, planning to make something for today's lunch.

"Let's see here...we got some ingredients for good dashi broth in the pot over there...let me see if there are any noodles I can use..." Shirou thought as he looked in the kitchen. As he went over to the fridge and opened it, he saw a package of udon noodles, tiger prawns, green onions, and kamaboko(fish cake). "Yes, I can use these..." he thought. He then brought the noodles out of the fridge along with the tiger prawns, green onions, and kamaboko he can use. "Hey master, is udon good for you today?"

"Yeah, I don't mind," Ritsuka replied.

However, as soon as Musashi heard the word "udon," she immediately lit up. "Yes please! It's been a while since I had some udon!" she said excitedly.

"I see...everyone else?"

"YES!" everyone besides EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, and Kiritsugu said.

Shirou sighed. "Well, this is going to take a while..."

Shirou then grabbed two giant pots and started filling one of them with water. As the water started to boil, he then added the dried bonito flakes and brought it to a boil. Once it started to boil, Shirou reduced the heat, simmered it for 30 seconds, and turned off the heat. He then waited for ten minutes to let the bonito flakes drop to the bottom of the pot. Then he strained the dashi and added soy sauce and mirin to it.

Outside of the kitchen, Ritsuka and Mashu felt an air of awkwardness between Musashi and the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Luvia, the Okitas, Irisviel, and Jaguar man in which the group of girls that knew Shirou were staring at Musashi intensely while Musashi was looking at Shirou cooking udon.

Eventually, the silence had to be broken as Jaguar man got out of her seat and went straight up to Musashi's face, demanding answers.

"W-What?" Musashi said.

"OKAY! THERE ARE A LOT OF QUESTIONS I WANT TO ASK YOU YOUNG LADY! FIRST OF ALL, WHO ARE YOU?! AND HOW DO YOU KNOW SHIROU?!" Jaguar man yelled, starting a trail of questions from the others.

"YEAH! I'VE NEVER SEEN YOU BEFORE AND YET YOU SAY YOU ALREADY KNOW EMIYA-KUN?! HOW?!" Ishtar and her counterparts yelled out.

"WHAT ARE YOUR INTENTIONS WITH SENPAI?!" Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters yelled out.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT WITH ONII-CHAN?!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu yelled out.

"DON'T TELL ME THAT YOU AND SHEROU ARE LOVERS, AREN'T YOU?!" Astraea exclaimed.

"TELL US HOW YOU KNOW SHIROU IMMEDIATELY!" Arturia and her counterparts yelled out.

"YEAH! AND YOU CLAIM TO BE MUSASHI?! THE LEGENDARY SWORDSMAN IN THE HISTORY OF JAPAN!? THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" Okita yelled out with Okita Alter nodding as well.

"Are you and my adoptive son lovers by any chance?!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly.

Meanwhile, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter looked at the scene and thought, "Just what did Shirou/my younger self get himself into this time...?"

Ritsuka and Mashu covered their ears to prevent themselves from getting ear damage. As the yelling ended, Rituka tried to ease the situation. "Listen everyone, try to calm down okay? This is Miyamoto Musashi, Chaldea's newest servant. I know all of you have questions after seeing what happened earlier, so let's all talk this out when Shirou is done making lunch, okay?"

After hearing Ritsuka's suggestion, the girls replied, "Fine..." Ritsuka let out a sigh, knowing that he temporarily diffused the situation.

"Senpai...is this what you were afraid for?" Mashu asked, remembering what Ritsuka said eariler.

"Yeah. Good thing the situation didn't spiral out of control..." Ritsuka said as he was glad that he got the situation under control...for the most part.

Meanwhile in the kitchen, Shirou was making the tempura shrimp. As he peeled and deveined the shrimp, he then detailed it to take out the moisture. He then rolled it in salt, starch, and a bit of sake. Afterwards, he started on making the batter in which he mixed beaten eggs with some cold water and whisked the flour into the mixture. He then lightly dusted the shrimp in the batter and deep fried it in the fryer. He then waited until the tempura shrimp was done, then he placed it on a cooling rack.

As Shirou was doing that, the udon noodles started boiling. Shirou then drained the noodles and placed them into bowls he prepared earlier. He poured the soup broth into the bowls and then started cutting the kamaboko and green onions into tiny pieces.

Lastly, he placed the tempura shrimp, sliced kamaboko, and greens onions onto the bowls.

"Lunch is ready!" Shirou yelled out as he presented the bowls in front of everyone. In an instant, everyone got out of their seats and each person grabbed a bowl of udon. As they did, they were in marvel as they looked at their bowls of udon Shirou made with some help from EMIYA.

Especially Musashi, since it's been a long time since she ever had a bowl of udon.

"This udon...looks amazing! Probably the best I've ever seen in quite a while! But how does it taste...?" Musashi thought as she grabbed her chopsticks, grabbed some udon noodles, and ate it. As she slurped up the noodles, she was in awe of the taste of the noodles. "Oh my god! This tastes good! This is probably the best udon I've ever had!" she thought.

And she wasn't wrong either. Everyone else was enjoying eating Shirou's udon. Especially the Arturias since they were emitting their usual happy aura when eating Shirou's food.

Eventually, everyone finished their udons with a smile on their faces.

"Well! That was good! Thanks for the meal Shirou!" Musashi said with a smile on his face.

"You can say that again. I even might consider making udon my favorite food, well...besides oden of course," Okita Alter said.

"Me too," Okita said.

As everyone was letting out sighs of relief of how good the food was, Jaguar man realized something.

It was time for answers.

"Ah! I just realized something!" Jaguar man said as she got out of her seat and went towards where Musashi was sitting. "Hey Musashi?! How do you know Shirou?!"

The rest the followed suit.

"That's right! What's your connection to Emiya-kun?!" Ishtar and her counterparts asked.

"What are your intentions with senpai?!" Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters asked.

"What is your relationship with onii-chan?!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu asked.

"Yeah! Don't tell me that you and Sherou are lovers, aren't you?!" Astraea exclaimed.

"Tell us how you know Shirou immediately!" Arturia and her counterparts exclaimed.

"Are you in love with my adoptive son by any chance?!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly.

"Are you really Miyamoto Musashi?!" Okita and Okita Alter asked.

There was silence between Musashi and the other servants as she was trying to process the questions that she just received. For once, she was stunned with what was going on and asked Ritsuka for help.

"Uh Ritsuka...I just realized this...but who are these people?" Musashi asked.

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "They're servants who knew Shirou dearly in which you mistook for gramps earlier."

"I-I see..."

"Speaking of which, there's something I need to ask of you master," Shirou said as he cut in. "How did you know what Muramasa looks like? Have you two ever met before?"

"Well...yeah. It happened a while ago, along with Musashi as well. You want to hear the story?"

In an instant, everyone was interested in the story Ritsuka had to say. "Yes," they exclaimed.

"Well...do you remember the time when I suddenly fell into a coma one day Mashu?"

"Yes."

"Well, what happened was that during that time, I went into an alternate world when I happened to stumble upon Musashi. Afterwards, we stumbled upon a little girl and her baby sibling named Nui and Tasuke along with a monk named Houzouin Inshun. However, during the traveling, we were attacked by dead soldiers and a group of servants known as the "Heroic Swordsmen." During our first encounter with them, Inshun stayed behind to protect us...but..."

"But what?" Mashu asked.

"He was turned into an undead by some sort of sorcery and came after us. After managing to get away from him, we managed to find the place where Nui and Tasuke was staying at. And then..."

"That's where you happened to meet Sengo Muramasa, correct?" Shirou interrupted.

"Yes!" Musashi exclaimed happily. "Anyways, when we met gramps, Inshun came up behind us and tried to attack him. But gramps turned the tides on him by swinging his sword at him, knocking him back!"

"I see...just one question. Why did you call him gramps?" Shirou asked.

"Well...that's what Nui calls him. Although I don't know why considering that he looks so young to be one..." Musashi replied.

Ritsuka sighed. "Me neither. Anyways, after dealing with the heroic swordsmen and gaining new allies, we found out the culprit of the heroic swordsmen and their actions."

"Who? Who was it?"

Ritsuka took a deep breath. "Amakusa Shirou Tokisada."

Shirou was surprised at what he just said. "Wait?! That Amakusa Shirou Tokisada?! The priest who wanted the salvation of humanity?! That Amakusa Shirou Tokisada?!"

"Yes. And don't worry, that one is from an alternate universe," Ritsuka said.

"Jeez...to think he was responsible for their actions...why did he do that?"

"Well...apparently, his main goal was the completion of the Onri Edo with the sacrifice of a princess of the Matsudaira clan. According to him, once the ritual is complete, not only that timeline will be engulfed by the darkness, but, like a curse transcending worlds, it will affect every timeline where the Tokugawa clan has left a trace in history, eventually reaching Chaldea and bringing a great calamity to the Time Tree itself. In order to do that, he used Shimousa as the right place to execute his agenda without so much opposition," Ritsuka said.

"I see...so what happened?"

"Well, we had to go and stop him. When we got there, he unleashed the Shimabara Hell, his reality marble. The air inside the reality marble is highly poisonous and it would burn to ash the lungs of anyone should they take a single breath without being careful enough. We thought we weren't going to survive in there, until..."

"Until gramps did something amazing! He swung his sword and somehow broke the reality marble itself!" Musashi said excitedly.

"Y-Yeah. Anways, after that happened, I woke up from my coma. And that's the whole story behind what happened and how Musashi mistook you for Sengo Muramasa, Shirou," Ritsuka said.

Everyone was silent from what Ritsuka just said.

"So...what are you saying...is that the reason why Musashi hugged Shirou is that-" Jaguar man said but was cut off from Ritsuka.

"Musashi mistook Shirou for gramps earlier and thought he was him. That's why she hugged him," Ritsuka said.

"I see...so that's what happened...why didn't you tell me about this earlier?" Shirou asked.

"Well...to be honest, I thought it was a coincidence that you looked like Sengo Muramasa...and I didn't expect Musashi to appear today either. Sorry."

"It's all right. Guess everything is fine now." "Although I need to talk to Muramasa the next time I see him..." he thought.

"Not yet. There's a few more things I need to do to clear this up," Musashi said as she faced to everyone else in the room. "I apologize for my earlier actions. It seems that I got Shirou confused with gramps and hugged him on impulse from seeing him. I'm sorry. Please forgive me," she said as she bowed in front of everyone.

For a moment, there was heavy silence in the room. Ritsuka was worried what was going to happen.

"Well...since you said it was an accident for getting Shirou confused with someone else...we're sorry for yelling at you," Arturia and her counterparts said.

"Yeah..." Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal said.

"Sorry..." Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters said.

"Sorry..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

"Sorry..." Astraea said.

"Well...people do make mistakes...guess I went a bit overboard here...sorry," Jaguar man said.

"Sorry..." Okita and Okita Alter said.

Musashi then turned to Shirou and said, "Emiya Shirou, I'm sorry for my earlier actions against you. It seems that I got you confused with gramps and thought it was you. Please forgive me," with a bow.

Shirou placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "I forgive you. After all, humans and servants can make mistakes, so you don't have to blame yourself for it," with a smile on his face.

Musashi then looked at Shirou and thought, "Wow, this person looks like Gramps, but he's a lot nicer! And a little bit cuter too! And he can actually cook good food! I wonder if they're related somehow..."

Ritsuka smiled as the whole situation was over. "Well then, glad that's taken care of."

"You said it senpai," Mashu said.

And then everyone resumed doing their daily stuff in the cafeteria. Shirou then began cooking seconds for the Arturias, Musashi, and Jaguar man, Ishtar and her rider self arguing with Astraea while Ereshkigal watches from the sidelines, Parvati chatting with Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya, Kuro, and Miyu spending time with Irisviel and Kiritsugu with EMIYA and EMIYA Alter watching, Okita and Okita Alter looking at their new swords, and Ritsuka and Mashu chatting with each other.

All and all, things were peaceful.

However, that peace would end.

Because as Shirou was about to leave, Musashi grabbed onto Shirou's arm, surprising everyone.

"Musashi?" Everyone thought.

"Hey Ritsuka, do you mind if I borrow Shirou-kun for a moment?

Everyone was surprised at what she just said. "SHIROU-KUN?! DID SHE JUST CALL HIM THAT?!" they thought.

"Well...why do you need him for?"

Musashi smiled. "I need him for a tour around Chaldea!"

"Well...Shirou, are you okay with that?"

"Well I don't mind but-"

"Great!" Musashi said as she started dragging him out of the cafeteria. "Come on Shirou-kun! I want to see more of Chaldea!" Soon, Musashi dragged him out of the cafeteria and headed towards the hallway.

For a moment, everyone was in shock of what just happened. Then, everyone in the cafeteria exploded and started running out of the cafeteria.

"GET HER!" the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar-man, and Okitas yelled out.

"Oh boy, I think I just sent Shirou to hell..." Ritsuka said.

"You probably did senpai..." Mashu said.

"Great! Not only did he manage to get two girls, but three! This is going to be more interesting with that many girls around Shirou!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly.

"Iri..." Kiritsugu said.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter had one thought about this whole situation.

_"Glad that's not me on that side."_

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Omake

Osakabehime was waking in Chaldea's hallway, trying to think of something to draw. "Argh! Why can't I think of something to draw?! Jeez, wish something inspiring to draw would come over to me..." she thought.

In an instant, her wish was granted.

Because as she was walking, she passed by Musashi dragging Shirou along being chased by the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar-man, and Okitas.

As the commotion passed by her, a bunch of ideas for drawings instantly came inside her head.

_"Wow. That was easy."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 11/17/20 update: Changed a part of the chapter because I make a huge mistake there.


	32. Fou's Return to Avalon

Shirou was walking down in the hallway of Chaldea. As he was walking down the hallway, minding his own business, he saw a little creature at one of the countertops, staring at the window into the snow.

"Hm? What's that over there?" Shirou thought. He then went over to get a closer look at what the creature was. As he got closer, he got a better look at what it was. It was a white furred squirrel-like animal that resembled a mix between a dog, cat, and bunny. It was wearing a mantle that looked like the robes Merlin was wearing.

The animal turned around to see Shirou in front of it.

"Hello. Are you lost little fella?" Shirou asked as he raised his hand.

The animal quickly moved at fear of seeing Shirou's hand. Shirou noticed this and removed his hand back. "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you," Shirou said with a smile.

The animal then looked at Shirou in confusion.

"My apologies. You were surprised because I suddenly became too close to your boundaries, right?"

The animal didn't say anything.

"Don't be scared. Come on, everything is all right," Shirou said as he raised his hand to the animal with a smile on his face.

For a few seconds, nothing happened between the two.

Then the animal slowly walked up to Shirou, heading up towards his shoulder. The animal then started to nudge on Shirou's face, making him chuckle.

"Heh...you seem nice. Do you have a name by any chance?"

The animal answered, "Fou!"

"Fou huh? Is that your name?"

"Fou!" Fou exclaimed happily.

Shirou smiled. "Such a cute animal. I wonder who he belongs to...Merlin prehaps? After all, he does looks like this animal right here. Too familiar I might say..." he thought as he continued to play with the animal while touching its fur.

After playing with him for a while, Shirou realized that he needed to go to the cafeteria to do his usual duties over here.

And that involved feeding a bunch of hungry lions and one swordswoman that has the same appetite of the lions.

"Well, time to go," Shirou thought as gently grabbed Fou from his shoulder and placed him on the countertop. He then left for the cafeteria.

However, before he can do so, he felt something latching onto one of his legs. Shirou looked down to see Fou latching onto his leg.

"Fou!"

Shirou looked at him and said, "You want to come with me?"

"Fou!"

Shirou then kneeled and raise his hand to Fou. "Come on."

Fou then went onto Shirou's arm...and ran up to his shoulder. Shirou sighed as Fou occupied his shoulder. "Well...this is not what I had in mind. Guess I'll have to bear it then."

With Fou on top of Shirou's head, Shirou then proceeded to head towards the cafeteria. While he was walking, he passed by multiple servants and they were giggled at the sight of Fou on top of Shirou's shoulder.

Shirou sighed again. "This is going to be a long day..." he thought.

Eventually, Shirou arrived at the cafeteria. As he appeared in there, everyone stopped what they were doing to see Shirou with Fou on his shoulder.

Especially the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, Taiga, and EMIYAs.

"S-S-Shirou, t-t-t-that creature on your shoulder...t-t-that's..." the Arturia's muttered while trying to keep a straight face.

"Emiya-kun...you...you..." Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal muttered while trying not to giggle.

"Senpai..." Parvati, Kama, and BB and her sisters said.

"Onii-chan..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

"Sherou..." Astraea said.

"Oh my Shirou, what is that adorable thing on your shoulder?" Irisviel and Taiga asked in unison after seeing Fou on Shirou's shoulder.

Kiritsugu didn't say anything.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter however had a smug grin of their faces for once after seeing Shirou with Fou on his head. "Hey kid, why is Fou with you?" EMIYA asked.

"Yeah. You look ridiculous," EMIYA Alter said with a smirk on his face.

Shirou sighed. "I don't know."

"Fou? Is that what that adorable creature's name is?" everyone else besides the Arturias, Ishtars, and Ereshkigal asked.

"Yeah..." Shirou said as he sat down on a table.

"How did fou-san get onto you onii-chan?" Illya asked.

"Well, I just happened to find him looking by the window in the hallway. At first, he seemed to fear me, but somehow within a short amount of time, he seems to be all over me," Shirou replied.

"I-I see..." Illya said.

"Can I pet him?" Miyu asked.

"Sure." Shirou said.

Miyu then got out of her seat and went over Shirou's shoulder to get a better look at Fou. "H-He's so cute..." Miyu thought as she tried to pet him, but Fou moved back a bit by fear.

"It's okay Fou. She's not going to hurt you. Along with everyone else here."

"Fou?"

Shirou smiled. "Trust me."

Fou then moved forward to allow Miyu to pet him. Miyu then proceeded to pet him.

"S-So fluffy!" she thought as she stroked his fur.

"Miyu! Let me have a turn next!" Illya said.

"Hey! I want to have a turn next!" Kuro said.

"Me too!" Sitonai said.

"Hey! I want to have a turn too!" Parvati, Kama, and BB and her sisters said.

"So do I!" Astraea exclaimed.

"Me too!" Irisviel said.

"Me three!" Taiga said.

Soon, most of the girls started to play with Fou. Meanwhile Shirou watched the scene with the Arturias, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter.

Arturia looked at Shirou and said, "Guess you still attract animals huh?"

"Yeah. Is there a problem with that?"

"Nope. Rather, me and my alternate versions love it," Arturia said with a smile.

"I see..." Shirou said with a smile back. "One question though. Why does Fou look an awful like Merlin?"

"I have no clue."

It was then that Rituska and Mashu came into the room, panting as they look exhausted from running around.

"Hey...has...anyone...seen...Fou-san..." Mashu huffed as she was gasping for breath.

As Ritsuka was gasping for breath, he raised his head to see Fou on top of Shirou's shoulder, having his fur being petted by the Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar man, and Irisviel.

"Hey Mashu...I think we found him..." Ritsuka said.

Mashu then looked up and saw Fou on top of Shirou's shoulder, having his fur being petted by the Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar man, and Irisviel. Rituska and Mashu then went over to where Shirou was.

"Ah, Shirou-san, I see that you have found Fou-san then," Mashu said.

"Yeah. I found him staring at a window at one of Chaldea's countertops," Shirou replied.

"I see..."

"He seems to be attracted to you..." Ritsuka said.

"Yeah..."

Eventually, the Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar man, and Irisviel got tired of playing with Fou and went back to their seats, finally giving Shirou some room.

"Mashu, by any chance, is Fou yours?"

"Well no. It's actually Merlin's familiar."

"I see." "So that's why it looks so familiar to Merlin...he was his huh..."

While Shirou was thinking, Fou suddenly moved himself up to Shirou's head. As Fou did that, everyone in the cafeteria nearly giggled at the act Fou just did, making Shirou confused.

"Um...why are all of you giggling?"

"Shirou...on your head..." Arturia said as she tried to supress a giggle.

"Hm? On my head?" Shirou said as he touched his head to see what was going on. As he did, he felt Fou's fur on top of him, making him realize that Fou just moved on his head. "Fou?"

"Fou!" Fou said.

At that point, everyone started laughing at the interaction between Shirou and Fou.

"It's not funny..." Shirou muttered.

"Sorry Shirou-san...but it just looks so cute and hilarious..." Mashu said while giggling.

"Mashu's...got a point there..." Ritsuka said while laughing.

Shirou sighed. "Anyways, I need to head to the kitchen now, so can you help me get Fou off of my head?"

"S-Sure," Mashu said while still giggling. She then soon stopped giggling and went up to Fou. "Come down Fou-san, Shirou-san needs to go to work."

However, to her surprise, Fou refused her.

"Fou!" Fou said angrily while staying on Shirou's head.

"Eh?"

"Fou!" (I finally found my home in Avalon! I'm not leaving here!)

Shirou was confused from Fou's behavior. "What's going on master?"

Ritsuka was stunned to see Fou latch onto Shirou and refusing to go down. "It seems...that Fou doesn't want to get down from your head for some reason..."

"Okay...so how do I get him down from there?"

"Honestly...I'm not sure," Ritsuka said. Meanwhile, Mashu was still in shock over the fact that Fou just rejected her.

Shirou sighed. This was going to be a long day indeed...

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Days has passed, and Fou still refused to leave Shirou's side, no matter what he did. Wherever Shirou went, Fou stayed with him by occupying his head.

Eating meals? Fou stayed with him.

Going on missions with Ritsuka and Mashu? Fou stayed with him.

Fixing broken appliances in Chaldea? Fou stayed with him.

Sleeping? Fou stayed and slept with him.

Heck, even Fou went into the showers with him.

While Fou staying with Shirou didn't hinder him and his work, it had a side effect he did not expect.

Which was the reactions of Fou sitting on top of Shirou's head from the other servants that knew or met him.

For Cu and his counterparts, they laughed at the sight of Fou sitting on top of Shirou's head.

For Medusa and her counterparts, they chucked at the sight of Fou sitting on top of Shirou's head. Especially Medusa and Ana.

For Medea, she just teased Shirou about Fou sitting on top of Shirou.

For Sasaki Kojiro, he just chuckled at Fou sitting on top of Shirou.

For Berserker Hercules, he just roared at him and fou.

For Gilgamesh and his counterparts, the Archer counterpart laughed at his face over how stupid he looked, the kid counterpart chuckled at the sight of Fou on top of Shirou's head, and the caster counterpart groaned not at Shirou, but at his counterparts because of the what danger they were just about to put themselves into.

For Nero and her counterparts, they were fawning over Shirou and Fou together, saying how cute they looked together.

For Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily thought it looked cute while Jeanne D'Arc Alter laughed at how ridiculous he looked.

For Arthur, he said it looked cute.

For Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, he said it looked cute.

For Scathach and her counterpart, they didn't pay attention to it.

For Jack, Paul, Nursery, and Abigail, they said it look cute on him.

For the Okitas, Okita complemented on how cute Fou looked on top of Shirou while Okita Alter just stared at Shirou and Fou.

For the Knights of the Round, they tried not to giggle at the sight of Fou on top of Shirou's head.

And for Musashi, she wanted to pet Fou.

Honestly, Shirou doesn't even know why Fou just stays with him.

Right now, Shirou was speaking with Da Vinci about why Fou doesn't want to leave Shirou's side.

"So, Da Vinci, any reason why Fou doesn't want to leave me?" Shirou said while Fou was still on Shirou's head, playing with his hair.

Da Vinci sighed. "Honestly, I'm not sure why. And that's the thing, you're the only one outside of Ritsuka and Mashu that Fou adores."

"Really?"

"Yup. Outside of those two, well now three because of you, Fou doesn't show that much affection."

"I see...so that's why Mashu looked shocked on the day that Fou refused to come down from my head."

"Yeah..."

Shirou and Da Vinci were in silence while Fou continued to play with Shirou's hair. "What can I do Da Vinci?"

Da Vinci thought about Shirou's question and gave a hard thought. After thinking, Da Vinci finally thought of a solution. "Wait here!" she said as she suddenly left her workshop.

"What is she up to?" Shirou thought.

A few minutes, Da Vinci came back with Merlin in tow.

"Shirou! Da Vinci said you need some help here. Just what kind of help do you-"

In an instant, Fou jumped out from Shirou's head and yelled, "Die, Merlin! Foooouu!" while instantly kicking Merlin in the face. Merlin then fell backwards from kick Fou just gave him. Fou then proceeded to tackle him. Meanwhile, Shirou looked at the scene in confusion.

"Uh...Da Vinci, what just happened?"

"Well...that is what happens when Fou meets Merlin. Any time when these two meet, it always starts with Fou kicking Merlin to the ground," Da Vinci said.

"I see. And why?"

"Well...I think it's because of something bad Merlin did to Fou in the past. Although I don't know what it was though..."

"I-I see..." Shirou said. "Just what did Merlin do to Fou in the past to make him kick him in the face on first sight?" he thought.

Meanwhile, Merlin was having a fight with Fou. "Get off of me you feral beast! Why do you show me this hostile attention every time you see me?!"

"Fou!"


	33. Noble Phantasm

_Noble Phantasm._

_They are powerful armaments made using human imagination as their core and are the weapons and/or abilities owned by Heroic Spirits._

_As humanity's illusions, they embody the ultimate mysteries of a hero as symbols of their existence through historical fact and anecdotes._

_They can be physical weaponry (e.g. swords, spears, bows) or support items (e.g. shields, rings, crowns). They can also be abstractions such as unique, often magical abilities (even close to or matching True Magic), unique (even conceptual) means of attack, curses, and changes to the very environment and its physical properties._

_Even a servant can equip multiple noble phantasms as once._

_When summoned as Servants in the Holy Grail War, they are the trump cards of the heroes that allow them to overcome others in battle._

_However, a noble phantasm isn't meant to be used as a show for other people._

_Not up until now._

_When a certain red-haired servant's noble phantasm attracted many people that knew him..._

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Emiya Shirou took a deep breath as he was in Chaldea's testing room. Today was the day that Chaldea was finally able to record his noble phantasms and see what it is for future references.

However, there was one thing he did not expect.

The amount of attention he was going to receive when he was going to unleash his noble phantasms.

Which was in the form of the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, EMIYAs, Ritsuka, Mashu, Fou, Da Vinci, Neros, Jeannes, Okitas, Musashi, the Knights of the Round, Merlin, Lancer Cu, Rider Medusa, Caster Medea, Berserker Heracles, Sasaki Kojiro, and surprisingly the Gilgameshes looking at Shirou.

And they all look anxious...well, most of them are.

Shirou sighed at the situation in front, or rather behind him. "Just how did something as simple as this turned into something so big?" he thought.

_(A few hours ago...)_

"Eh? You want me to come to the training room later?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah. Is that a problem for you?" Da Vinci replied.

"Well no...but why though?"

Da Vinci smiled. "Chaldea needs to know what your noble phantasms are for future reference."

Shirou thought about what Da Vinci said and realized that ever since he arrived in Chaldea, he hasn't shown his noble phantasms in front of anyone at all. "That's right. Ever since I arrived here, I haven't even shown what my noble phantasms are. Wonder why it took this long for me and Da Vinci to realize this..." he thought.

"Shirou?" Da Vinci asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing Da Vinci," Shirou replied.

"I see. Anyways, can you do it?"

"Yeah. I suppose it's about time huh?"

"Excellent! Then meet me in the training room in a few hours. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Good! Bye Shirou!"

"Bye Da Vinci."

Da Vinci then let Shirou alone and headed towards the training room. However, she didn't notice that there was someone overhearing the entire conversation.

Or rather, somebodies.

"Did you hear that?!" Illya whispered.

"Yeah! Onii-chan has two noble phantasms! And he and Da Vinci are going to test them within a few hours!" Kuro replied in whispers.

"Wonder what his noble phantasms are?" Sitonai asked. "A sword that shoots a giant laser? Or is it summoning a bunch of swords? Or is it a technique that involves multiple strikes? Or is it something else that we have never seen before?"

"Who knows? Anyways, let's go check it out later!" Miyu exclaimed in excitement.

"Yeah!" Illya, Kuro, and Sitonai exclaimed as well. They then soon left for the training room.

However, what they didn't know was that someone else overheard the conversation as well.

And that person was Irisviel Von Einzbern.

"What's this that I'm hearing? My son has two noble phantasms up his sleeve? Well this seems interesting...better tell the others! Especially the girls!" Irisviel thought excitingly.

Soon, Iriviel stared talking to the girls about Shirou's noble phantasms testing, which got the girls excited.

And this started to spread throughout of Chaldea.

_(Back to the present...)_

Shirou sighed again at the situation. "Da Vinci, just is going on here?"

"Well...it seems that word has spread about you carrying two noble phantasms and today's testing of it," Da Vinci said sheepishly.

"I can see that..." he said as he turned around to see the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, EMIYAs, Ritsuka, Mashu, Fou, Da Vinci, Neros, Jeannes, Okitas, Musashi, The Knights of the Round, Merlin, Lancer Cu, Rider Medusa, Caster Medea, Sasaki Kojiro, and the Gilgameshes looking at him. "And why are all of you here...?"

"Because we want to see how strong you have become Shirou," Arturia and her counterparts said.

"B-Because we want to see what kind of ridiculous stuff you'll pull off today!" Ishtar and her counterparts said with a blush on their faces.

"We want to see senpai's noble phantasms," Parvati, Kama, and BB and her sisters said.

"We want to see onii-chan's noble phantasms!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu exclaimed.

"I want to see what display of power Sherou's noble phantasm has!" Astraea exclaimed.

"I'm here to make sure you don't get yourself into trouble!" Jaguar-man said.

"I want to see what kind of noble phantasms my son has!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly.

"I'm only here because Iri dragged me here..." Kiritsugu said.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter didn't say anything.

"Well...I can't help but be curious at what your noble phantasms are Shirou," Ritsuka said.

"M-Me too..." Mashu said.

"Fou!" Fou said.

"I want to see what abilities your noble phantasms have my praetor!" Nero and her counterparts said proudly.

"Hmph. I'm here because I've not nothing better to do..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

"Now, now, that isn't the case. Isn't it?" Jeanne D'Arc said with a smile.

"I want to see what Shirou is capable of..." Okita and Okita Alter said.

"I want to see what noble phantasms does Shirou-kun have!" Musashi said excitedly.

"We want to see what our queen is capable of," Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth said.

"I want to see mother's noble phantasms! I haven't seen them before!" Mordred exclaimed.

"I am curious to see what Shirou's noble phantasms are..." Merlin said with a sly smile.

"I'm interested in what the kid has on his sleeve," Lancer Cu said with a smirk on his face.

"I want to see what Shirou has," Rider Medusa said.

"I'm interested in what the boy has to offer," Caster Medea said.

"Rarrrrgh!" Berserker Heracles yelled.

"I wonder what techniques saber's former master will show..." Sasaki said.

Archer Gilgamesh didn't say anything, but Caster Gilgamesh did. "I'm here just to see why my Archer counterpart keeps calling you Faker."

"Me too," Kid Gilgamesh said.

Shirou sighed as he heard everyone's reasons. "Jeez. When Da Vinci told me about the recording of my noble phantasms, she probably didn't expect this much attention from everyone here..."

"Shirou! What are you waiting for! It's time you know! You don't want to keep these people waiting!" Da Vinci yelled.

"Huh? Oh yeah."

Shirou then turned around again and then took a deep breath. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then he slowly raised his hand.

**"My body is made out of swords."**

In an instant, swords started materializing out of nowhere, shocking everyone besides the EMIYAs.

**"My blood is of iron and my heart of glass."**

As more swords started to materialize, a sudden wind appeared in the room and Shirou's body started to light up with the magic circuits in him.

**"I have created over a thousand blades."**

**"Unaware of loss, nor aware of gain in every battle."**

**"Withstood pain to create weapons, striving for that utopia."**

The Arturias' ears suddenly perked at hearing that line. Suddenly, a ring of fire appeared around everyone.

**"I have no regrets as I accepted this path."**

In an instant, Mashu immediately knew what this was. "Shirou-san! Is this-?!"

**"This body is made out of infinite swords!"**

And at that moment, everything was encased in a bright light. For a moment, everyone covered their eyes to protect themselves from the brightness that happened.

And after a few moments, the brightness was gone, and everyone opened their eyes.

And they were in shock, especially EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Merlin, and Fou.

In front of everyone was a meadow under a bright yellow sun. A cool breeze swept through soft green grass, the sight stretching out forever to the distant horizon. Beautiful flowers of blue and red, of purple and white, grew underfoot in this land of endless day. There were a few trees in some areas.

On top of that, there were swords everywhere, ranging from long swords to short swords, broadswords, straight swords, curved swords, any kind of sword was here. Not only that, but there were spears, axes, any kind of weapon with a blade.

All of the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, EMIYAs, Ritsuka, Mashu, Fou, Da Vinci, Neros, Jeannes, Okitas, Musashi, The Knights of the Round, Merlin, Lancer Cu, Rider Medusa, Caster Medea, Berserker Heracles, and Sasaki Kojiro were in awe of the beauty of the landscape in front of them while the Gilgameshes just looked at it in anger.

"Shirou..." Arturia and her counterparts said.

"Emiya-kun..." Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshigal said.

"Senpai..." Parvati, Kama, and BB and her sisters said.

"Onii-chan..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

"Sherou..." Astraea said.

"Shirou..." Jaguar-man said.

"Oh my...this seems to be a beautiful place..." Irisviel said.

Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter didn't say anything. However, EMIYA and EMIYA Alter had one thought in mind.

"So, this is the conclusion that my younger self ended up with...and this is the result of the path he chose to embark..."

"My praetor..." Nero and her counterparts said in awe.

"Wow..." Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts said.

"These many swords...there's so many of them..." Okita and her counterpart said.

"Oh my! There's so many swords here! This is a dream come true!" Musashi said excitedly.

"My queen...you have this many weapons in you..." Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth said.

"Mother...this looks amazing..." Mordred said in awe.

"This scenery...it reminds me of Avalon...Shirou, you sure have surprised me today," Merlin said with a grin on his face.

"Fou!" Fou exclaimed excitedly as he played on the ground, reminding him of his first home.

"Wow kid. You have this many weapons in you...jeez, now I want to fight you even more..." Lancer Cu said.

"Shirou..." Rider Medusa said.

"Boy..." Caster Medea said.

Berserker Heracles just stared at the scenery.

"Wow...this reminds me of home..." Sasaki Kojirou said.

"Faker...!" Archer Gilgamesh muttered angrily with his counterparts joining him, now knowing why he keeps calling Shirou Faker every time he sees him.

After all, each of the Gilgameshes were mad at how Shirou easily has every of their "treasures" so easily.

"Wow. This is amazing..." Ritsuka said.

"I could make a painting out of this..." Da Vinci said.

"Yeah. To think that one of Shirou's noble phantasms would be a reality marble..." Mashu said.

Everyone turned to Mashu for a moment and yelled out, "WHAT?! A REALITY MARBLE?!"

"Y-Yeah..." Mashu said nervously.

Then everyone then looked at Shirou, making him sigh from what Mashu just said. "Guess I got to explain it now, huh? Yes, one of my noble phantasms is my reality marble. It is a high-class thaumaturgy that embodies my internal world and imprints it upon the world as a bounded field for a short amount of time. It is my one true specialization of magecraft, the result of "Sword" being both my origin and my Elemental Affinity, and the basis of my projection and reinforcement skills."

Ritsuka and Mashu shocked to hear this. "Is there something wrong?" Shirou asked.

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing Shirou. I'm just surprised that one of your noble phantasms is a reality marble," Ritsuka said. "And it looks oddly similar to Archer's in a way."

"Y-Yeah. Me too," Mashu said.

"I see," Shirou said.

As everyone took a longer look at the inside of Shirou's reality marble, Mordred saw something that interested her.

Or rather two things.

"Hey mother? Do you also live here as well?"

Everyone was confused at what Mordred just said. "What do you mean by that Mordred?" Gawain asked.

"Well...there's a house in the corner over there," Mordred as she pointed to a direction.

That immediately got the attention of the everyone except Shirou at the moment. As they all went to see what Mordred was talking about, the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, Taiga, Kiritsugu, and the EMIYAs were shocked to see what was over there.

Over in the direction Mordred was talking about was Shirou's old house, which was a Japanese-style mansion. And along with it was Caliburn stuck on a stone.

And for some odd reason, a bunch of swords were there as well.

"S-S-S-S-Shirou, is that..." Arturia and her counterparts stuttered.

Shirou sighed. "Yes. That's my house. Well, a replica of it. Along with Caliburn as well."

This time, it was everyone's besides the Gilgameshes turn to be surprised because of out all of the things that were in Shirou's reality marble, it just happened to be his old house.

"Ehhhhhhhhhhhh?! That's your house Shirou-san?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah," Shirou replied.

"Wow. That's one thing I would never expect to see here. And you call that a house? This looks like a mansion a rich person would have!" Ritsuka said.

"Huh. So, my praetor lives in a giant house like this...as expected from my praetor!" Nero and her counterpart said proudly.

"Exactly! A mansion like this is worthy of Sherou!" Astraea said in agreement with Nero and her counterparts.

"So, this is the house Queen Shirou grew up in..." Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth said.

"Man. Was mother rich or what?" Mordred said.

"Who knows? Although I'm more interested in how Shirou's reality marble managed to replicate Caliburn in the stone..." Merlin said with a sly grin on his face.

"A Japanese-style mansion...not bad..." Okita and her Alter said.

"Didn't know that Shirou lived in a house like that..." Jeanne D'Arc and her alter said.

"Wow! So that's the house Shirou-kun grew up in. Looks a lot better than my house! And it's much bigger too! I want to look!" Musashi said before she started to head towards the house. Soon, everyone else followed her as well.

When they arrived, Mordred looked at Caliburn and went closer to it.

"What are you doing Mordred?" Shirou asked.

Mordred smirked. "Isn't it obvious? I'm going to pull Caliburn out of the stone! Can I mother?"

"Well...if you want to I guess..."

"Yes! Thanks mother!" Mordred said before she ended up in front of Caliburn. She then tried to pull Caliburn from the stone.

However, what happened next completely blew everyone's minds off.

Because in an instant, the doors started to open, and a voice was heard.

"Hey! Don't touch somebody else's work!" the voice said.

Everyone besides Shirou jumped at that voice. "That voice...it can't be!" they all thought.

"Oh boy. Here he comes..." Shirou thought.

"Jeez, even other people don't try to invade my host's reality marble, so I was wondering what was all the ruckus going on earlier. Imagine to my surprise to see a bunch of other people here..." the voice said with a sigh in the end.

As the figure revealed itself from the doors, everyone was shocked and mind-blown at who the figure was.

Because in front of them was Sengo Muramasa.

Who happened to look a lot like Shirou, but a little older.

And he was wearing the same outfit as Shirou too.

"This place here is just a recreation of my host's house. You punks better state your reasons of being here before I kick all of you out of here!" Muramasa yelled out.

There was a moment of silence between the blacksmith and the group of people.

Just because everyone's mind shut down trying to process the information that Sengo Muramasa and Emiya Shirou look exactly the same.

Eventually, Musashi broke the silence. "Gramps!" she said excitedly.

"Hm? Oh, hey Musashi, it's been a while. How are you doing?"

"I'm doing great! Thanks for the katana you lend me!"

"No problem," Muramasa said before he turned to Shirou and Ritsuka. "Hey there Shirou, it's been a while since I last saw you. And I see that you brought the kid along with you."

"Yeah. It's been a while Muramasa," Shirou said.

"Yeah, and what's the large amount of people that's behind you, especially that giant over there?" he asked as he pointed at Berserker Heracles.

"Well...let's just say Chaldea needs to record my noble phantasms...and my friends, family, and a few other people came to watch..."

"I see..."

"Um Shirou...is that person in front of you..." Arturia and her counterparts finally muttered after having their minds shut down.

Shirou sighed. "Yes. The person in front of me is Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith."

At that moment, everyone besides Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu yelled out in shock upon hearing those words. "EHHHHHHHHHHHH?!" they exclaimed.

"Wait, wait, that's Sengo Muramasa?! But he's so young!" Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal yelled out.

"That's him?! But he looks so much like senpai!" Parvati, Kama, and BB and her sisters said.

"Jeez! It's like there's two onii-chans here!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

"Two Sherous...that's something I would have never expected to see..." Astraea said.

"Oh my...now how can I tell which on is which?" Irisviel said.

"Jeez! Things just got a lot crazier! Now I can't tell who's who!" Jaguar-man yelled.

Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter didn't say anything. However, EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were freaking themselves out on the inside.

_"OKAY. I KNOW THAT I SHOULD PROBABLY GET USED TO IT RIGHT NOW WHEN IT COMES TO SEEING MY YOUNGER SELF BUT SEEING THIS?! I CAN NOT HANDLE THIS AT ALL! FIRST OF ALL, HOW IS IT THAT SENGO MURAMASA HAPPENS TO LOOK LIKE MY YOUNGER SELF?! ARE WE RELATED OR SOMETHING?!"_

_"JEEZ, IT'S ONE THING SEE YOUR YOUNGER SELF NOT GETTING CORRUPTED. BUT NOW, SEEING TWO OF THEM?! Well, one of them just looks like him, but is not him. STILL THOUGH! THIS IS JUST WAY TOO CREEPY BEYOND MY TASTES!"_

"W-Wow. Who would have ever thought that Shirou-san and Sengo-san look the same..." Mashu said.

"Yeah..." Ritsuka said.

"So that's Sengo Muramasa...no wonder why Musashi mistook Shirou-san for him earlier..." Okita and her Alter counterpart said.

"Sengo Muramasa...so that's him..." Jeanne and her Alter counterpart said.

"Eh...so that's Sengo Muramasa...he seems capable," Nero and her alternate versions said with a smile on their faces.

"Wow. Who would have ever thought that there is someone who looks like our queen..." Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth said.

"No kidding. It's like looking at two mirrors..." Mordred said.

"This looks interesting..." Merlin said.

"I've heard of look-alikes, but this is crazy...this is even too much of a genius like me..." Da Vinci muttered.

"Oi oi, I've seen weird shit before, but this takes the cake..." Lancer Cu said.

"Well, this is a turn of events..." Rider Medusa said.

"Jeez. I've heard of look-alikes, but this is ridiculous. They look too much like each other..." Caster Medea said.

"So that's Sengo Muramasa...and he looks like Saber's former master...what's the connection between the two...?" Sasaki said.

"So, the faker has a faker. Isn't that ironic!" Archer Gilgamesh said as he started laughing while his Caster and kid versions sigh.

"Jeez, what a loudmouth. Someone needs to shut his mouth later..." Muramasa whispered to Shirou.

"You have no idea..." Shirou replied. "Anyways, do you mind this many people around here?"

"I don't mind. After, this is your house after all. I'm just guarding the place here."

"Thanks, Muramasa."

"No problem." Muramasa then sat down on one of the wooden floorboards and turned to Ritsuka. "So, I take it that all of these people know Shirou, kid?"

"Y-Yeah..." Ritsuka said.

"How?"

"Well...some of them knew him because of a holy grail war he was in...and others knew him because of his arrival in Chaldea."

"I see..."

Illya then came up to Muramasa, "Um...excuse me..."

"Hm? What's up you little girl?"

"Well...I have a question...it's...um..."

Kuro then decided to say the question. "How come you look a lot like onii-chan?"

Muramasa was confused. "Onii-chan?"

"He means me Muramasa. By the way, that's my little sister you're talking to," Shirou said.

"Oh."

"Yeah! From the facial features to even the outfit, how is this possible?!" Sitonai and Miyu exclaimed. Soon, everyone else looked at Sengo Muramasa, wanting to know the question that was bothering them.

Muramasa sighed and said, "Well...I'm his ancestor."

Everyone besides Shirou was shocked upon hearing this. "Ehhhh?! Ancestor?!"

"Yeah," Muramasa calmly stated.

"But how?!"

"Well...there's a certain reason for that. It's because his body and mind are similar to mine, including his origin as well. Not only that, but his magecraft, although I don't want to admit it, involves creating swords, which I do."

"I-I see."

"Yeah. And the same can be applied to his alternate versions as well."

Everyone was confused when Muramasa said that. "Alternate versions?"

"Yeah. What, you all got something in your ears?"

"Well...what do you mean by that?" Ritsuka asked.

Muramasa sighed. "Let me show you then." He then got of the wooden floor and headed towards where EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were confused. "W-What?"

Muramasa took one look at EMIYA before starting to ruffle his hair. As he did, EMIYA's hairstyle reverted into Shirou's hairstyle.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" EMIYA asked before Muramasa stopped ruffling his hair.

"See? This is what I meant," Muramasa said, showing his proof in front of everyone.

At that moment, everyone besides Shirou and Irisviel were shocked at what they just saw.

In front of them was the familiar face of Emiya Shirou, although a bit different.

"Well, this was bound to happen eventually...although not in a way like this..." they both thought as everyone was looking at him and his altered counterpart.

"S-Shirou...?" Arturia and her counterparts stammered upon seeing his face.

"I-I-I-I-Is that...?!" Ritsuka stammered.

EMIYA sighed. "Yes master. What you are seeing here is the existence known as Emiya Shirou. That includes my altered counterpart as well."

At that point, everyone's minds broke again after hearing this. Especially the servants and masters from the fifth holy grail war and the Emiya family.

"EHHHHHH?!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu yelled out. "You're onii-chan?!"

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Yeah..."

"B-B-But you look so different! And you sound so different!" Miyu said.

"Yeah! How is that possible?!" Sitonai said.

EMIYA took a deep breath before saying his answer. "This is the result of me overusing my magecraft to the very limit, therefore the appearance you see in front of me right now. The same applies to my altered self too."

"Yeah..." EMIYA Alter said.

"If that's the case, then why hasn't the same happened to Shirou-san?" Mashu said as she pointed at Shirou.

"It's because he hasn't done the same mistake as me and my altered counterpart did."

"I-I see...wait does that mean?!" Ritsuka said as he just realized something.

EMIYA sighed. "Yes, me and my younger self have the same reality marble, although mine looks completely different from his."

"So, does that mean?" Da Vinci said.

"Yes. We both have the reality marble: Unlimited Blade Works."

"Is that so...does the same apply to your alter counterpart?"

"No. His is a lot different than mine master," EMIYA Alter said.

"I-I see."

"Huh...to think that Archer, his alter, and the kid are the same person...well, now things make sense now," Lancer Cu said.

"Yeah...Archer and Emiya-kun are the same person...this is something that I never would have expected..." Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal said.

Archer Gilgamesh started laughing. "Hahahahahahaha! So now we have three fakers here! Isn't that funny!"

Everyone sighed upon hearing Archer Gilgamesh's laughing and taunting at the same time. However, that was when Muramasa did the unthinkable.

"Oh why don't you shut your loud mouth up you arrogant golden brat!" Muramasa yelled out.

Everyone went silent after hearing Muramasa's outburst. Archer Gilgamesh turned to Muramasa in anger. "What...did you...say to me...you mongrel..." he said menacingly.

"Huh? You got something stuck between your ears and brains? Then I'll say it again! Shut your loud mouth up you arrogant golden brat!" Muramasa repeated.

Archer Gilgamesh got even angrier after hearing what Muramasa just said. "HOW DARE YOU! CALLING ME, THE KING OF HEROES, AN ARROGANT GOLDEN BRAT?!"

"Well that's because you are acting like one!" Muramasa said.

"AND HOW SO?!"

"Because you kept calling my descendant and his alternate versions fakers!"

"WELL THEY DESERVED TO!"

"How so?!"

"BECAUSE EVERY WEAPON HERE IS AN INFERIOR FAKE! COMPARED TO THE TREASURES I POSSESS, THESE WEAPONS HERE ARE JUST A COPY!"

"Oh? What makes you think they're inferior?"

"BECAUSE I SAID SO!"

"That's not something to back up with, you spoiled brat!"

"WHY YOU...!"

Meanwhile, everyone was watching the verbal fight between Muramasa and Archer Gilgamesh with shock.

_"Jeez, who would have ever thought that Muramasa can sure bring out insults that hurt..." everyone thought._

"Will both of you calm down?!" Shirou yelled, making both of them go silent for a moment. "Jeez, I leave him alone for a moment, and he's already starting trouble...guess I have no choice then..." he thought. "Muramasa does have a point though. Why do you think that every weapon here is inferior?"

Archer Gilgamesh calmed down for a moment and said, "Hmph, isn't it obvious? Because every weapon here is based on from the various treasures I possess in my Gate of Babylon. And if anything, a fake can't be the original!"

"Because you think of yourself as the King of Heroes?"

"Exactly!"

"Then how about we put that to the test then?" Shirou said.

At that moment, everyone was stunned at what Shirou just said.

"Hah? What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that if you want to prove what you just said, then fight me. Or are you scared that your precious treasures will lose to these imitations you keep bad-mouthing?" Shirou said with a sly smirk on his face, angering Archer Gilgamesh and surprising everyone else.

_"Why this mongrel...!"_

_"Wow. Who would have ever known that the King of Heroes was weak to pressure..."_

"Well?"

Gilgamesh let out a humph and said. "Normally I wouldn't do something like this, but for you, I'll make an exception! Since you've angered me this much!" He then left the area of the mansion.

Shirou smirked. "Well...guess that's settled then."

However, before Shirou could leave, Arutria and her counterparts called him out.

"Shirou, will you be all right fighting against him?" Arturia and her counterparts asked.

"Yeah."

"Are you sure?"

"Trust me. I'm not the same half-baked magus I was before."

"Well...okay, but if things get bad, I'll jump in. Is that okay with you?"

"Sure."

Arturia and her counterparts smiled. "Then go get him Shirou."

Shirou smiled back. "As you wish."

"Hey Emiya-kun! Don't lose!" Ishtar, her Rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal said.

"Senpai! Win please!" Parvati, Kama, and BB and her sisters said.

"Onii-chan! Don't lose!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

"Sherou! Win!" Astraea said.

"Shirou! Make sure to look cool while you win!" Irisviel and Jaguar-man said.

Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter didn't say anything.

"My praetor! Show me what you can do!" Nero and her counterparts said.

"Hey Shirou! Kick that arrogant king's ass over!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter yelled before she got hit in the head by her non-altered counterpart.

"Language!" Jeanne D'Arc said.

"Shirou-san! Don't lose to him!" Okita and her counterpart said.

"Shirou-kun! Show me what you got!" Musashi said.

"Hey kid! Beat that guy's ass for me, will you!?" Lancer Cu said.

"Show me saber's former master. Show me the skills you have honed..." Sasaki Kojiro said.

"As much as I don't want to admit it, go kick my Archer's counterpart's arrogant ego down to bits," Caster Gilgamesh said.

"I agree with my Caster counterpart," Kid Gilgamesh said.

Berserker Heracles just growled.

"Shirou! Make sure to use your other noble phantasm!" Da Vinci said.

"Hey Shirou, go kick that golden arrogant brat's ass for me, will you?!" Muramasa said.

Shirou had one word to say for all those requests.

"Yes!"

Shirou then arrived at the area where Archer Gilgamesh was.

"Hmph. Are you ready you mongrel?"

"Yeah. Here I come, King of Heroes. Do you have enough swords in stock? Shirou said.

Gligamesh growled. "You think to highly about yourself, you mongrel," he said as he activated his Gate of Babylon.

In an instant, swords started to fly towards where Shirou was. Shirou then picked up a sword from the ground and started to swing at Gilgamesh's swords, deflecting them. As he did, more swords appeared from Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon. Shirou then continued to deflect them like before. Gilgamesh then summoned more swords from his Gate of Babylon and fired them at Shirou in multiple directions. Shirou then dodged some of the swords while blocking the others at the same time. Afterwards, Shirou began to run towards where Gilgamesh was. "Hey, hey! What's wrong, king of heroes? Are your swords slower than mine?"

"Tch! Don't get too cocky mongrel!" Gilgamesh said as he prepared himself to throw more swords at him.

However, Shirou was one step ahead. He traced all the weapons Gilgamesh was about to throw at him and summoned the same number of weapons at the Gate of Babylon, instantly knocking them down.

"What?! He was a step ahead of me?!" Gilgamesh exclaimed; his attention temporarily diverted to somewhere else.

"Too slow!" Shirou yelled.

In an instant, Shirou slashed down a part of Gilgamesh's armor. As the piece of Gilgamesh's armor fell to the ground, Gilgamesh was in disbelief of what just happened.

And he was angry too.

"Why you!" He yelled as he drew a sword from the Gate of Babylon, intending to strike Shirou in the head. However, Shirou noticed that, turned around, and blocked his sword strike. Shirou then pushed Gilgamesh backwards to get some space.

"That's odd! Why are this mongrel's blades are giving me trouble?! It shouldn't be possible for me to have trouble with a mongrel like him!"

As if to answer Gilgamesh's thoughts, Shirou suddenly said, "Don't you get it?"

Gilgamesh then looked at Shirou.

"You may be ranked the highest of all of the heroic spirits because you possess over a thousand noble phantasms. However, you're a king, not a warrior. You didn't choose the path of taking a single noble phantasm to its ultimate limit."

Shirou then pointed his sword at him.

"In other words, you're a one-trick pony, just like me!"

Gilgamesh slightly growled at what Shirou just said. "When I'm done with you, there won't be a single bone shard left of your counterfeiting cranium!" he yelled as more portals opened up, revealing more swords coming out of them. As Gilgamesh's swords started flying towards Shirou, Shirou then countered with his own swords flying at them back while running to the side. Some of Shirou's swords followed him and as Shirou got closer to Gilgamesh, they flew to the ground to create some dust to distract Gilgamesh.

"Tch!" Gilgamesh said.

Shirou then ran towards Gilgamesh and swung his sword at him, but Gilgamesh blocked it.

"Impossible! I'm being forced back by a fraud like you?!"

"Against any other servant, a reality marble like this would be a slight hindrance to a servant who has mastered one noble phantasm. However, against someone like you, my swords are reading and waiting, so I'm always one step ahead of you!" Shirou yelled as he struck down the sword Archer Gilgamesh was holding and broke it.

Archer Gilgamesh was shocked as Shirou just broke one of his treasures with the imitations he was badmouthing earlier. "D-Damn you..."

Archer Gilgamesh then brought out another sword from the Gate of Babylon and swung it at Shirou. And like what happened earlier, Shirou broke it with his own sword.

"Damn you!"

And Archer Gilgamesh did the same thing again.

And it broke again.

Repeatly.

"Damn you! Damn you! Damn you!" Archer Gilgamesh yelled as he swung angrily at Shirou. However, Shirou touched Archer's Gilgamesh's sword's tip with his own and made him release it into the air. However, that's when Archer Gilgamesh decided to rain swords on top of Shirou, making him go backwards.

Archer Gilgamesh growled. "Damn you! To think that I must go all-out on the likes of a faker like you!" he yelled as more portals appeared. He then started firing more swords on Shirou while Shirou continued defecting some of them with his sword while dodging at the same time. As he kept deflecting Archer Gilgamesh's swords, he was slowly catching up to him.

However, as he caught up to him, Archer Gilgamesh summoned multiple portals in every direction of where Shirou was and rained a bunch of swords on him. The swords came down on him and hit the ground hard, creating a pile of dust in the air.

Gilgamesh smirked at the work he just caused. "That faker shouldn't be able survive this..."

However, he was completely wrong.

Because at that moment, Shirou appeared out of the cloud of dust, holding two unknown katanas even Gilgamesh doesn't know and just slashed him, breaking more parts of his armor and scratching him, resulting in him moving past him.

For once, Archer Gilgamesh was baffled. Because of two things.

One was that there were two weapons he did not know of.

And the other was that he received an injury from the faker.

Archer Gilgamesh turned around angrily, seeing what weapons Shirou was holding. The katanas Shirou was holding were quite similar and yet different. The designs of each katana were the same as the other. However, it was the color scheme that separated them. The katana Shirou was holding in his right hand had a white blade, a golden guard, a black handle, and a golden ornament. The katana on his left hand had a black blade with some red lines around it in a turtle pattern, a golden guard, a black handle, and a golden ornament.

"Faker...what are those weapons..." he growled angrily.

Shirou smirked. "Never seen them before? Then let me tell you then."

He then pointed at Archer Gilgamesh using the katana on his right hand.

"Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya."

Archer Gilgamesh was baffled upon hearing this. "Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya?! I've never heard of this!"

"Of course. After all, it's something that I made after all!" Shirou said as he proceeded to rush towards where Archer Gilgamesh is with both swords in his hands.

"Tch!" Archer Gilgamesh said as he brought out two swords from the Gate of Babylon and tried to defend himself, but in an instant, Shirou broke them with Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya. "Damn you!" he yelled as he summoned more portals to attack him. He then threw a multitude of blades at him.

However, what happened next was unexpected.

Shirou stabbed one of the swords into the ground and raised his hand.

"Rho Aias: Version Avalon!"

In an instant, a gold version of the seven pedal flower shield appeared in front of Shirou, protecting him from the number of blades that came towards him.

"What?!" Archer Gilgamesh yelled, not expecting that to happen.

As the number of swords coming after him stopped, Shirou picked up the other sword from the ground and ran towards Archer Gilgamesh.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"He's a fine piece of work, isn't he?" Muramasa said with a smirk to everyone around the mansion.

Everyone besides Muramasa was in shock upon hearing the words "Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya" and "Rho Aias: Version Avalon" from Shirou's mouth.

And he was actually forcing Archer Gilgamesh back using them.

"Shirou..." Arturia and her counterparts said.

"Emiya-kun..." Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal said.

"Senpai..." Parvati, Kama, and BB and her sisters said.

"Onii-chan..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

"Sherou..." Astraea said.

"Shirou..." Irisviel, Jaguar-man, and Kiritsugu said.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter didn't say anything. However, they had one thought.

"Since when was my younger self able to do that?"

"My praetor..." Nero and her counterparts said.

"Shirou..." Jeanne D'Arc and her altered counterpart said.

"Shirou-san..." Okita and her altered counterpart said.

"Shirou-kun..." Musashi said.

"Our queen..." Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth said.

"Mother..." Mordred said.

"Shirou..." Merlin said.

"Fou..." Fou said.

"Kid..." Lancer Cu said

"Shirou..." Rider Medusa said

"Boy..." Caster Medea said.

"Kid..." Sasaki said.

Caster and Kid Gilgamesh said nothing.

Berserker Heracles just growled.

Everyone was looking at the fight in wonder.

After all, it's rare to see the King of Heroes actually getting pushed back by someone.

"A-A-Am I hearing this right?" Ritsuka said.

"Y-Yeah..." Mashu said. "It appears that Shirou-san has created two noble phantasms..."

"Shirou-kun made twin katanas out of thin air! And a gold flower shield too!" Musashi exclaimed happily. "Speaking of which, I want to take a look at them later!"

"Calm down Musashi," Muramasa said.

"Now just hold on a second! Since when was Emiya-kun able to create a noble phantasm?! Let alone two?!" Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal said.

"Eh?! Was he not able to in the past?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah! Last time, he was only able to trace weapons! Not create them! This is a shock!"

"I-I see..."

"Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya...what does that do?" Da Vinci asked.

"From what I heard from Shirou when he first created them, Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya is a weapon that combines the traits of the dual weapons; Kanshou and Bakuya, and Myoujingiri Muramasa."

"And the other?"

"Rho Aias: Version Avalon is a defensive weapon that act likes a shield in which it combines the defensive capabilities of Avalon and Rho Aias."

"I see..." Da Vinci said. "Are any of the two his second noble phantasm?"

Muramasa shook his head. "Nope. They're just weapons he created on his own."

"Really?!"

"Yeah. And there's a lot more he can do," he said with a smirk on his face.

Everyone then looked at the battle between Shirou and Archer Gilgamesh with a bunch of thoughts on their minds.

"Wait. If that's the case, can well...well..." Ritsuka shuddered.

EMIYA sighed. "Just call me EMIYA master. I don't consider myself as my younger self anymore."

"I-I see. So EMIYA, can you do the same thing as well?"

"Well no actually. I think the reason why my younger self was able to create Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya along with Rho Aias: Version Avalon was because he fused himself with Sengo Muramasa over there. Maybe the fusing between the two may have changed my younger self's magecraft a bit to the point where he's able to do something like this."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

"Still though...who would have ever known that the kid was capable of something like this..." Cu said.

"Eh? You know him Cu-san?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. In fact, me, the king of knights, the red archer there, Rider, Caster, Berserker, the other archer over there, and the little girls over there all knew him as well."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. But stil...who would have ever though that the weak kid back then would grow up to be a monster..."

"Yeah. Master, what class is the boy?" Medea said.

"Eh? Ah, he says he's a Saber-class servant. Why?" Ritsuka replied.

"Well...judging from the fight, it looks like he's a Caster-class servant to me."

"You think so?"

"That's what it looks like to me."

"Wait, does that mean that Shirou-san is a double-class servant?!" Mashu said.

"Eh?! A double-class servant?! Is that even possible?!" Ritsuka said.

"Could be. After all we have Archers that uses swords..." Da Vinci said.

"Well that's true..." Ritsuka said.

Muramasa sighed as he continued to watch the fight. As he was watching, Arturia, her counterparts, and Musashi came up to him. "What?"

"Um...if I may want to ask...how did you and Shirou/Shirou-kun meet?" they all asked.

Muramasa then turned his head to them and said, "Well...call it an unexpected encounter."

"What do you mean by that?" they asked.

"Well...it all started when he picked up a hidden Muramasa blade."

Arturia, her counterparts, and Musashi got interested upon hearing this. "What happened next?"

"Well...the kid touched the sword and it somehow resonated with him. The next thing that I knew was that I suddenly woke up in this kid's reality marble on the ground here. And you want to know what happened next?"

"What?"

"When we saw each other, I was in shock with how there was someone who looked exactly looked like me and the same applied to him as well. During that moment, I sensed that Shirou's body was similar to mine and that's when I realized that he is my descendant."

Arturia and her counterparts chuckled. "I wonder what his face looked like when he saw you?"

Muramasa chucked back. "Possibly the funniest I have ever seen. It looked like he saw a ghost."

Arturia and her counterparts and Musashi laughed as they imagined the face of Shirou upon meeting Muramasa for the first time. "So, what happened next afterwards?"

"Well, we had a chat, talking about how I am his descendant and how we are similar to each other, and that's the story of what happened."

"So that's the story of how you and Shirou/Shirou-kun met..." the Arturias and Musashi said.

"Yeah. Anyways, you might want to go back to watching the match. Shirou's up to something."

Upon hearing this, Arturia, her counterparts, and Musashi went back to watch the match.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Archer Gilgamesh couldn't believe it.

Many of his treasures were falling to the weapons Shirou were holding in his hands.

And it was making him mad.

Okay, scratch that. It was making him furious.

"Don't get too confident, you mongrel!" Archer Gilgamesh yelled as he summoned more portals and threw more swords at Shirou. Shirou moved backwards and dodged them all. Shirou then continued moving forward to where Gilgamesh was.

However, Shirou suddenly stopped.

Because Archer Gilgamesh activated the chains of heaven on him, restricting his movement. "Ha! Looks like you can't move now!" he said. He then brought over a sword from his Gate of Babylon and was about to strike down Shirou.

However, Shirou let go of his swords for a moment and did the one thing that wasn't done before.

He punched Archer Gilgamesh right in the face.

At that moment, Shirou could have sworn he heard laughter and cheering from the mansion as he punched him.

As Shirou punched Archer Gilgamesh right in the face, he went back by a few feet and released his swords from the chains of heaven. Shirou then grabbed his swords again and went for Archer Gilgamesh.

At that moment, Archer Gilgamesh was even beyond furious.

"YOU FAKER!" he yelled. He then summoned even more swords then before and they were all aimed at Shirou.

With the intention to kill.

Archer Gilgamesh then threw the swords at Shirou, creating a giant dust storm when they impacted to the ground. As the dust cleared, Shirou was nowhere to be found.

"Where is that mongrel?!" he thought as he growled, looking at the area around him, but couldn't find him. He then looked up and saw him.

However, he saw a sight that was unexpected.

Shirou was in the air, wielding a familiar black bow.

And he was using a sword as an arrow.

"Go into the distant red plains! Hrunting!" Shirou yelled as he shot Hrunting at Archer Gilgamesh. There was an explosion as Hrunting hit Archer Gilgamesh in the chest.

Meanwhile, everyone besides Muramasa, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Mordred were surprised at what Shirou just did.

He projected a black bow and shot Archer Gilgamesh in the air.

"D-Did senpai just..."

"Yeah. It appears that my younger self shot that arrogant king with a bow," EMIYA said.

"Ehhhhhh?!" everyone besides Ritsuka, Mashu, Mordred, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter yelled out.

"Huh? Why are all of you surprised?" Mordred suddenly said.

Everyone turned to Mordred. "What are you talking about Mordred?" Gawain asked.

"Huh? Didn't all of you saw this before?" Everyone shook their heads. "Huh. Guess me, master, and the demi-servant are the only ones who saw mother use that then."

Arturia, her counterparts, the rest of the Knights of the Round, and Merlin looked at Mordred in surprised. "Mordred, you already knew?" Arturia and her counterparts asked.

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you tell us about this?" the Knights of the Round asked.

"Well...all of you didn't ask anything about this..." Mordred replied.

"She does have a point," Merlin said.

"Oi oi oi oi! First Saber, then Caster, and now an Archer?! Is the kid a triple-class servant or what?!" Cu said.

"Who knows?" Rider Medusa said.

"A triple-class servant...as expected from my praetor!" Nero and her counterparts said.

Back at the fight, Shirou was panting a bit after shooting Hrunting in front of Gilgamesh. "Jeez, that last shot may have been a bit too much..." he thought as he was looking at the cloud of dust he caused. As the dust cleared, it showed a very furious Archer Gilgamesh with the top part of his armor destroyed.

"How dare you...not once, but twice you showed disrespect to the king of heroes...YOU DESERVE A DOG'S MISERABLE DEATH, YOU FAKER!"

In his anger, Gilgamesh opened another portal and brought out his most prized and dangerous treasure yet.

The sword of rupture, EA.

"CONSIDER THIS YOUR LAST MOMENT TO LIVE FAKER!" he yelled in anger as he raised it in the air.

At that moment, Ritsuka and Mashu were freaking out. "Is Gilgamesh bringing his noble phantasm out?! Now?! That can't be good!" he exclaimed.

"Senpai! Is there anything we can do!?" Mashu exclaimed as she was worried.

"There's no choice, we need to stop this-"

"Master!" Shirou yelled.

Ritsuka and Mashu stopped for a moment upon hearing Shirou's voice.

"This is something that I started, and I need to finish it. I know this is selfish of me, but please let me finish this with my own hands."

Ritsuka was stunned. "But-"

"Please," Shirou said with resolve in his voice.

Defeated, Ritsuka sighed as there was no way to change Shirou's mind. "As you wish," he said as he sat back down.

"Oh boy, Shirou's about to unleash that..."

Everyone was confused with what Muramasa just said. "What do you mean by that Muramasa-san?" Mashu asked.

"Well...just look and see..."

Shirou then unsheathed the katana that was with him for the first time since this whole fight. As he drew it out, Gilgamesh sneered at what seems to be Shirou's attempt to block EA.

"Hmph! To make me pull out my greatest treasure...you deserve some praise at least..."

Gilgamesh then raised EA in the air.

"But are you seriously thinking of going up against my greatest treasure with something like that?!" he asked while looking at the katana Shirou just pulled out.

Shirou stayed silent.

"Ha! The faker has gone silent upon my greatest treasure being pulled out! However, it is expected, because after all, my greatest treasure is unparallel to none!" Archer Gilgamesh then laughed.

"Is that what you think?"

Archer Gilgamesh stopped his laughter and looked at Shirou. "Huh? What are you going to say, you mongrel?"

Shirou smirked. "Let me show you something interesting..."

***Cue Fate/Grand Order OST: Epic of Remnant-EMIYA***

Shirou began to chant.

**"I'm not the King of Knights, Arturia.  
I'm not the one praised as the Hound of Ireland, Cu.  
I'm not the Witch of Betrayal, Medea.  
I'm not the great hero, Hercules.  
I'm not the wandering swordsman, Sasaki.  
I'm not the fallen goddess, Medusa.  
And I'm not the counter guardian of humanity, EMIYA.  
Why, out of all people, I, a magus, was summoned.  
For being unable to foresee that, this is your defeat."**

**"Once seeking for the ultimate blade.  
A blade of steel cutting no flesh, nor bones and neither life.  
What I seek for is the clearance of resentment.  
The cutting of bonds, fate and destiny."**

Shirou then raised his katana in the air. However, what happened next shocked everyone.

Because at that moment, every sword that was in Shirou's reality marble started to light up, went on fire, and then suddenly disappeared. Afterwards Shirou's katana started to glow up to the point where it looked like it was on fire. Not only that, but Shirou had a red aura around him that was swirling around him like a harsh wind.

**"That is, to free oneself from Karma."**

**"Upon one's arrival are countless tools.  
Carved over a thousand blades, forming a pile of swords.  
This is the place where all paths cross.  
This is the place where all desires flow.  
This is the place where all deaths await.  
My whole life was for this single swing."**

Growing tired, Archer Gilgamesh then unleashed EA on Shirou.

"It's over faker! Enuma Elish!"

Shirou then swung his sword at Archer Gilgamesh.

**"The heart of the blade is right here!  
**

**Take this, this is my Tsumugari Muramasa!"**

As Shirou swung his sword at the sword of rupture, a few pillars of fire suddenly came out of the ground, making everyone shield their eyes from the clash between Tsumugari Muramasa and EA. As the clash ended the the flames died out, everyone opened their eyes were surprised with the results of the clash.

Both contestants were standing and exhausted, and it meant that Shirou had beaten EA with Tsumugari Muramasa.

However, the one who was most surprised out of them all was Archer Gilgamesh.

Because his most prized treasure, EA, was beaten by a sword carried by a faker.

And it angered him.

However, that was when he noticed something.

EA was on the ground.

Along with his arm holding it.

And it proved one thing.

Tsumugari Muramasa outranked EA by a mile.

Archer Gilgamesh then looked at the bloody stump that was where his severed arm used to be.

And for once, he felt pain upon realizing it.

Not wanting to show his pain, Archer Gilgamesh yelled at Shirou, demanding answers on what just happened.

"Faker...what did you do...how did you survive my most powerful treasure...it shouldn't be possible...!" he moaned.

Shirou chucked. "You want to know?" he muttered.

In an instant, everyone looked at Shirou, wanting to know what the answer was.

"The weapon that sliced through Enuma Elish is known as Tsumugari Muramasa, which is my second noble phantasm. It is the realization of Sengo Muramasa's ideal sword. The sword is one that can purge resentment, cut through bonds, fate, causality, and destiny, and slice through the idea of karma itself. It is a recreation of the Kusanagi-no Tsurugi, the sword that came out from the tail of Yamata-no Orochi from the age of gods."

Everyone besides Muramasa had their eyes widen upon hearing this. "A copy of a divine construct?! That's his other noble phantasm?!" they all thought.

"Then...tell me this! How is it that copy of a divine construct was able to cut through EA?!" Archer Gilgamesh yelled.

Shirou sighed and said, "It's because Tsumugari Muramasa rests in both the physical and astral planes of existence, which means it is capable of harming anything. That includes a god and anything with divinity as well. Along with demonic attributes as well."

"W-What...?!" Archer Gilgamesh exclaimed in disbelief.

"Yeah...so basically, this weapon is your worst enemy...or rather, my entire existence is your worst enemy..."

At that moment, Gilgamesh was in denial for the first time. However, before he could even say anything, the exhaustion was getting to him. "Y-You...faker..." he moaned before he fell to the ground, unconscious. Shirou then sat down on the ground, exhausted after a battle that went overboard. "Well...guess that's over..."

However, he soon heard multiple footsteps coming towards him.

And those footsteps came from the Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, and Astraea.

And they all proceeded to tackle him with a hug.

"YOU IDIOT! YOU MADE US WORRY ABOUT YOU!" they all exclaimed.

Shirou laughed sheepishly. "Sorry."

"SORRY ISN'T GOING TO CUT IT YOU KNOW!"

While Shirou was being bombarded with the yelling from Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, and Astraea, the rest were watching the scene.

"Wow! The kid just defeated Gilgamesh and now the girls are over him! Isn't he lucky!" he said with laughter.

"No kidding. To think that boy would actually defeat the king of heroes..." Caster Medea said.

"You have a point there," Rider Medusa said.

"Yeah. And the fact that his noble phantasm actually outranks his as well..." Sasaki said.

"Even though I'm glad that someone got my Archer counterpart's ego into place, I think he went a bit overboard..." Caster Gilgamesh said.

"Agreed," Kid Gilgamesh said.

"Ok, it's settled. Mother is definitely the strongest servant here..." Mordred said.

"That we can agree on Mordred," Gawain said with approval from the knights of the round.

"Oh my, guess little Arturia and her counterparts seemed to have won it big," Merlin said with a sly grin on his face.

"Umu! That battle was excellent! As expected from my praetor!"

"Hey! What do you mean he's your praetor?!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter yelled.

"Now, now..." Jeanne D'Arc said.

"Do you think I can borrow that?" Okita Alter said.

"I don't think so..." Okita said.

"That was amazing!" Musashi said excitedly.

"Oh my, who would have ever known that the battle would end up like this..." Irisviel said.

"You're telling me. I think that nearly shaved some years off my life...speaking of which, I need to give Shirou a lecture later..." Jaguar-man said.

"Hey. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" EMIYA Alter asked to his non-altered counterpart.

"Yes. It appears that our younger self has surpassed us," EMIYA said.

"Shirou...is this what you were capable of...?" Kiritsugu said.

"W-Wow. Shirou actually won..." Ritsuka said.

"Y-Yeah," Mashu replied.

Da Vinci smiled. "And we now have data on Emiya Shirou's noble phantasms! Although I did not expect things to end up like this. Speaking of which, I need to talk to him about something."

Da Vinci then went over to the area where Shirou was. However, when she arrived there, the girls were still yelling at him. She then waited until the girls stopped yelling at him. "Shirou, do you mind if I ask something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Is Tsumugari Muramasa a weapon you created like the others?"

"No, this was originally Muramasa's noble phantasm until he gave it to me."

Everyone turned to Muramasa. "Shirou, you shouldn't have said that..." he muttered.

"Wait! So, the giant slash that happened earlier back then in Shimosa-" Musashi said excitedly.

"Was me when I unleashed Tsumugari Muramasa on that sorcerer," Muramasa said.

"Is that so...but what happened to you later? I didn't see you anywhere."

Muramasa sighed.

"Gramps?"

"It's because when I used it, I died immediately afterwards."

Everyone was immediately alarmed by this. Meanwhile, Shirou mentally facepalmed himself. "Damn it Muramasa. You just had to say it..." he muttered.

"Wait! Does that mean that Shirou will die too?! He used it after all!" Ritsuka said.

"Well...that's the funny thing. I've seen him use that many times, and it didn't even kill him. Although it did leave him drained quite a bit. Even now, I still don't know the mystery behind it..."

"I-I see..." Ritsuka said with relief.

"Yeah. Well anyways, it was fun seeing all of you guys here, but time is running out."

Everyone was confused with what Muramasa said. "What do you mean by that?" Ritsuka asked.

Then in a way to answer Ritsuka's question, a crackle-like sound was heard, and in an instant, a hole appeared in the reality marble. "What was that?! Where did that come from?!"

"It's the aftereffects of Tsumugari Muramasa. Not only it was strong enough to go up against what the arrogant golden brat had earlier, but it was able to break a reality marble."

"Really?!"

"Yeah. Anyways, it's been fun meeting all of you!" Muramasa said with a grin. "See you!"

"Yes! Until we meet again gramps!" Ritsuka replied.

"Yeah! By the way, make sure to keep an eye on my descendant, will you?! He can sure be a magnet for trouble!"

"Yes!"

"Okay then, bye!"

Everyone soon said their farewells after Ritsuka did as Shirou's reality marble faded away. As so, everything went back to normal.

"Yeah. Well, at least everything is over," Shirou said with a sigh.

"Not yet," Arturia and her counterparts said.

Shirou was confused. "What do you mean by that?"

"Remember what Muramasa said?"

Shirou thought about it and realized that he just revealed something he shouldn't have. "Uh oh."

"Shirou, prepare to receive a reprimanding from all of us."

"All of us?"

As on cue, the Rin-faces, Sakura-faces, Illyas, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, and surprisingly Kiritsugu appeared in front of him.

"Emiya-kun..." Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal muttered.

"Senpai..." Parvati, Kama, and BB and her sisters muttered.

"Onii-chan..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu muttered.

"Sherou..." Astraea muttered.

"Shirou..." Irisviel, Jaguar-man, and Kiritsugu said.

Shirou sighed at the situation he was in. He was sure going to get an earful today...

"Oh boy...I'm in big trouble now..."

And then he was scolded while everyone else watched.

However, this was only the beginning of a storm he was going to deal with.

Because news in Chaldea spread quickly.

And this was big news...

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omakes**

Shirou was about to leave his room. However, when the door opened, he was greeted with a surprise he did not expect.

In the form of a line of servants in front of him.

Shirou looked at the line of servants and asked, "Can I help you...?"

They all replied, "Please fight me Emiya Shirou!"

Shirou sighed. "Why?" he thought.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bedivere was walking around Shirou's mansion. As he did, he came upon a certain item.

The 00 Raiser mystic code Da Vinci gave him a while ago. Or rather, a copy of it.

"What's this sword? For some reason, it feels familiar...even though I have never seen it before."

He then touched the mystic code and pulled it out from the ground. "Seems light for something long."

That's when he got a surprise he did expect.

"Voice recognized. Welcome back Setsuna F. Seiei."

Bedivere was shocked, confused, and dropped the mystic code at the same time. "Setsuna F. Seiei?! Who's that?!"

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I really did not expect to meet you like this again gramps," Ritsuka said.

Muramasa said nothing.

"There's something I need to ask you..."

"Well. What is it?"

Ritsuka then took a deep breath before saying his question.

"Is that outfit Shirou is wearing is your fetish gramps? Isn't it weird that one of his arms is covered while the other isn't? Also, does he actually wear that everywhere he goes, including somewhere that is cold? Also, why doesn't he ever complain about the outfit that he is wearing? Doesn't he ever get caught by the authorities for looking like that?"

Muramasa looked angry upon hearing this.

"Get out."

"Huh?"

"I said get out!" he yelled before he punched Ritsuka on the head.

Ritsuka woke up with a start.

"Good morning senpai," Mashu said.

Ritsuka looked around the room and said, "Ah...he avoided my questions."

"Senpai?"

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hmmmmmmm..."

"Hm? What's wrong Mordred?" Bedivere asked.

"Huh? It's nothing Bedivere," Mordred replied.

"Are you sure? It doesn't seem that way. Trust me, I can tell."

Mordred sighed. "You always have a knack for things like this huh? Fine, I'll tell you."

"Okay. What seems to be the problem?"

Mordred gulped before saying her problem. "It's my mother's side of the family."

Bedivere was confused. "What about it?"

"Well...since I just found out that Sengo Muramasa is my mother's ancestor...should I call him my great, great, great, great, great, great grandmother or great, great, great, great, great, great, step grandmother? Or great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather or great, great, great, great, great, great, step grandfather?"

Bedivere didn't have an answer for that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 11/17/20 update: Added more greats because I screwed up on when Muramasa was born.
> 
> 1/1/21 update: Changed a certain area of the chapter because of the recent release of Sengo Muramasa.


	34. Aftermath

News about the King of Heroes' defeat were spread throughout of Chaldea.

All of Chaldea's servants who weren't there to witness the battle between Emiya Shirou and Archer Gilgamesh were surprised when news of this were spread.

Not to mention the fact that there were somehow even images of the fight earlier.

And the fact that EA was actually defeated by his sword.

Because of this, Chaldea was having a field day. Some servants were talking about the fight between the two while some servants were writing stories about it or recording it for future generations in Chaldea. And some servants were drawing the fight as well.

However, it also had an unexpected effect.

And here are a few examples that Emiya Shirou was about to find out soon...

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou yawned as he woke up in his room. As he got out from the bed, he folded the sheets up and grabbed his katana that was hanging on the floor.

He then proceeded to leave his room...

Only to receive a line of servants in front of him at the front door of his room.

As he looked at the line of servants, he saw some servants he was familiar with. For example, he saw Cu and his counterparts and Scathach and her counterpart. Alongside them were other servants he didn't recognize.

"Um...can I help all of you?" Shirou asked.

All the servants in the line took a deep breath before yelling, "Please fight me, Emiya Shirou!"

Shirou was baffled with what he just heard. "W-Why?"

Lancer Cu had a grin on his face. "What? You didn't hear? Everyone in Chaldea is literally going crazy over the fight between you and the King of Heroes!"

"Yeah! It's what everyone has been talking about lately! Especially about you!" Proto Cu said.

"Really?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah! When we first heard it from our Lancer counterpart, we were surprised from what you did to that arrogant king!" Caster Cu said in excitement.

"Yeah. Not only you actually beat his noble phantasm, but you cut his arm off. That's quite impressive," Cu Alter said.

"Yeah. Even by my standards," Scathach said.

"True. After hearing from our student and his counterparts talking about how you utterly beaten the king of heroes and completely taught his arrogant ego a lesson, we wanted to have a chance fighting you again. Especially after we found out that you were possess a noble phantasm that was able to outrank EA and kill gods. It intrigues me and my counterpart as how come we have never heard of it before," Scathach Skadi said.

"I-I see...so everyone else here..."

"Is here because they all heard of your victory over the King of Heroes and want to fight you. Especially since some of them here have a grudge against him."

Shirou was surprised. "Really? There are some servants here who have a grudge against him?"

Lancer Cu laughed at Shirou's statement. "Some? Kid, you have no idea how many servants here has a grudge against him."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah..." Cu Alter said.

"I-I see. So, every servant here in the line has a grudge against him?"

"Nah. Some of them here are just interested," Proto Cu said.

"Anyways, you want to fight them?" Caster Cu said.

"And let me guess, I can't say no?"

"Are you kidding. After seeing this line of people, can you say no?"

Shirou sighed. "Well...there shouldn't be any harm in fighting them...so yes, I guess," he said.

Lancer Cu grinned. "Great! Now let's go to the training room so we can do the introductions!"

Lancer Cu then grabbed Shirou's hand and dragged him to the training room followed up by the line of people following them. As they arrived, Lancer then let Shirou go of his hand and allowed him to catch some air.

Eventually, Shirou got on the training arena. "Wonder who's going to be my opponent?"

As he thought of that, his got his answer as a servant came up to the arena. The servant was a remarkably handsome man with quirky long hair combed backward in a rough fashion that has a strand hanging down his face. He was wearing a dark teal outfit, similar to that of Cú's, but it didn't look like his blue tights.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Emiya Shirou."

"And you are?"

"I am Diarmuid O'Dyna, first spear of the knights of Fianna," Diarmuid said as he readied his two spears. "Emiya Shirou, let's have a fair and honorable match!"

Shirou then unsheathed his katana. "As you wish."

"Well then...here I come!"

In an instant, Diarmuid charged at Shirou with Gáe Dearg and Gáe Buidhe in his hands. He then thrusted Gáe Dearg at Shirou, but he dodged it towards the side and was about to swing his sword at him. However, Diarmuid blocked his strike.

"Tch!" Diarmuid said as he brought some distance between him and Shirou. Shirou lunges at him with his sword, ready to strike him. However, he intercepted the strike with Gáe Buidhe and saw an opening. He then takes advantage of the short distance between him and Shirou to attack with Gáe Dearg.

However, that opening was a trap.

Shirou blocked the spear and deflected it, hoping to land a hit on Diarmuid's shoulder. However, Diarmuid moved his body and brought some distance between him and Shirou.

Diarmuid was confused. While he has heard of this fighting from Cu and his counterparts, going up against it in real life was harder than it said. "What is up with his fighting style? From what I heard from Cu and his alternate counterparts; his fighting style requires him to be completely open. However, after what happened earlier, I couldn't even get a hit on him." he thought.

Diarmuid then twirled Gáe Dearg and put himself in a defensive stance. Shirou then lunged towards him and was about to strike him with his sword, but Diarmuid proceeded to block him. However, it was then that Shirou then proceeded to assault him with a flurry of strikes from his sword.

"Whoa!" Diarumid thought as he took on each strike coming from Shirou using his spears to block them. As he kept blocking them, he then kicked Shirou to get some distance between themselves.

For a moment, both servants were breathing to catch some air from the clash earlier. As they were breathing in some air, Diarumid said, "Wow. Cu was right about you."

"About what?" Shirou asked.

"That you are an honorable warrior."

Shirou smiled. "Why thank you."

"Yeah. And considering who your father is, I'm surprised that you're nothing like him."

Shirou was surprised. "You knew my father?"

"Yeah. I met him during the fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War. We were enemies at the time. Along with the King of Heroes."

"I see..." Shirou said as he readied himself into a defensive position. "Do you have any hard feelings of resentment against me because of my father?"

"No. I only have hard feelings of resentment against him only. Not to you since our earlier clashes proved that you are not a coward like him."

"I see...do you want to continue this match?"

Diarmuid smiled. "With pleasure."

"Then...here I come!" Shirou said as he lunged at Diarmuid while Diarmuid did the same with Gáe Dearg and Gáe Buidhe. Soon, the two were in a dance of strikes, slashes, and parries. As the dance continued, both servants were getting tired of the fighting and they retreated to their sides of the arena.

_"Emiya Shirou...he's a worthy opponent...and unlike his father, he goes headfirst into the fight without any fears nor hesitation..."_

_"Diarmuid O'Dyna...he said he knew my father along with the King of Heroes...that means he probably knows Arturia too...wonder what happened between him and my dad that made him have a grudge against him..."_

As both sides were tired of the match, they had one thought in mind.

"I need to end this soon...!"

As if both sides knew what was going on with their minds, both of them posed themselves into a final strike against each other.

"Heh. Guess we both have the same thought in mind," Diarumid said with a chuckle.

Shirou chucked as well. "Looks like it."

"Then...this is the last attack! I hope you are prepared, Emiya Shirou!"

"Yeah!"

Both servants then charged towards each other. In an instant, they clashed with each other, with them ending on opposite sides.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then Diarmuid relaxed himself and let out a grin. "You are a worthy opponent, Emiya Shirou."

Shirou smiled. "Is that so?"

"Yeah. Cu was right about you."

"I see. I enjoyed this match too Diarmuid."

Diarmuid then laughed and brought out his hand for a handshake. "Likewise, Emiya Shirou."

Shirou then brought out his own hand and did the handshake with Diarmuid.

"Hey kid! I don't mind you and Diarmuid doing a handshake, but can you hurry up? You got other people to fight you know!" Lancer Cu said.

Shirou and Diarmuid stopped their handshake and turned around to see Cu and his counterparts, Scathach and her counterpart, and the other servants waiting for their turn.

"Oh...looks like I need to go now. Goodbye Emiya Shirou."

"Yeah. Goodbye Diarmuid O'Dyna."

Diarmuid then got off the arena and said, "Good luck fighting everyone else!" before he left the training room.

Shirou sighed. "I'm going to need a lot more than good luck here..." he thought.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou took a deep breath after walking in Chaldea's hallway. After many battles between himself, Cu and his counterparts, Scathach and her counterpart, and the servants that were in the line, he finally got himself a break.

Or so as he thought...

"Mommy!"

Shirou heard the voice and turned around to see Jack running towards him. "Jack?"

Jack then gave Shirou a hug. "Mommy?"

Shirou was confused. "Why are you calling me mommy?"

Jack looked at Shirou. "You don't like it?"

"No. Just confused."

"Oh. Well, we call you mommy because of your nice hospitality during the tea party."

"I-I see...so what do you want from me Jack?" Shirou asked.

Jack then pointed at the katana Shirou was carrying. "I want some new knives."

"New knives?"

"Yes?"

"What about your old ones? Aren't they good?"

"They are good, but we want to try some of your swords. Especially after what happened when you used them against goldie earlier."

"Goldie? Ah, she must be referring to Archer Gilgamesh."

"Anyways, can we have some new knives mommy?"

"Well...sure. As long as you don't abuse them."

Jack smiled. "Yay! Thanks mommy!"

"No problem," he said. Shirou then traced a copy of Kanshou and Bakuya for Jack to use. "Here you go."

Jack smiled. "Thanks mommy!" She then left the hallway.

Shirou then continued walking down the hallway, minding his own business. As he was walking, servants that he kept passing by were congratulating and complementing him on his victory against Archer Gilgamesh. Some were even asking questions on how he did it of what kind of skills does he have.

Shirou sighed at the attention that he was being received. "Jeez. And I thought being known as the fake school janitor at Homurahara Academy was one thing, but this? I know I should be used to this by now...but for some reason, I can't. Maybe working in the kitchen may calm my nerves a bit."

However, before he can do that, he felt a hand grabbing onto his arm. He had no time to react.

"What the?!"

In an instant, he was suddenly dragged into a room that was coincidently next to him. Shirou then ended up in a room where everything was black. "What is this room? And who dragged me here?"

However, he got his answer as the room lit up. As Shirou covered his eyes to adjust them, what he saw completely baffled him. Inside the room was a multitude of servants who were wearing Japanese clothing of all eras sitting in seiza form. In front of all of them were a kaiseki(multi-course) meal on tables. He saw Okita and her alter, Musashi, Osakabehime, and Sasaki who gave him a wave with a smile.

Shirou then turned around to see the person who dragged him here. The person who carried him was a woman who was shorter than him and had black hair and red eyes. She was wearing a military uniform that looked like it came from the Meiji Era.

"Uhm...who are you, and why have you dragged me here?" Shirou asked.

The woman let out a huge grin. "Glad you asked Emiya Shirou, my name is Oda Nobunaga! The Devil King of the Sixth Heaven! The King of Innovation!"

"And the Big Fool of Owari..." Okita said.

"Okita!" Nobunaga yelled.

Shirou was surprised to hear this "Oda Nobunaga?! The person who dragged me here earlier is Oda Nobunaga?! The Devil King of the Sixth Heaven?! That's her?! I swear, do historians tend to get famous people's genders mixed up?! And why did she drag me here with all of those servants?!"

"Hm? What's wrong Emiya Shirou! Are you shy in front of these people?" Nobunaga exclaimed proudly.

"Well it's not that...I'm just confused about why I am here in the first place," Shirou replied.

Nobunaga grinned. "Well sit down and we'll tell you!"

Shirou then sat down at an empty seat where there was a empty cushion seat and a table of a kaiseki meal on it. Nobunaga did the same as well.

"Okay. Will someone tell me what's going on here?"

Musashi then spoke up. "Shirou-kun, this is a party to welcome you!" she said excitedly.

Shirou was confused. "Welcome me? For what?"

"Isn't it obvious? To officially welcome you as a fellow Japanese servant! Especially after what you did to that arrogant king! We were in awe because of that!" Nobunaga said joyfully as she slapped Shirou on the back.

Shirou coughed a bit after the slap. "You have a grudge against him too?"

"Nah. I just don't like how he acts around here. Especially with that arrogance of his. And it was pissing me off."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah! However, after hearing what you did to that arrogant king, I've never felt so satisfied before! Especially since what Musashi, Okita, her alter, and Sasaki told us about what your ancestor who happened to be Sengo Muramasa said to him!" Nobunaga said with a laugh. "Man! I wish I could have been there to see that!"

"I-I see..." Shirou said nervously.

"Anyways, introduce yourself to everyone here Emiya Shirou!"

Shirou turned around to see all the servants looking at him with curiosity. For a few seconds, he didn't say anything and took a few breaths to compose himself.

Then he did his introduction.

"My name is Emiya Shirou, the pseudo-servant vessel to Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith, who happened to be just as Oda Nobunaga said earlier, my ancestor. I hope we can get along with each other in Chaldea," he said as he bowed.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then the servants in the room started introducing themselves to him.

"My name is Ushiwakamaru, Shirou-dono!"

"I know we've already met, but I haven't told you my name yet. My name is Sasaki Kojiro."

"Golden! My name is Sakata Kintoki!"

"My name is Kiyohime."

"My name is Tamamo no Mae! And the person next to me is a part of me, Tamamo cat!"

"Nice to meet you!" Tamamo cat said.

"...Ryougi Shiki..."

"Oya? My name is Shuten Doji..."

"Ara ara...my name is Minamoto no Raikou."

"Ibaraki Doji is my name!"

"We already met, but I'm going to say it anyways! My name is Miyamoto Musashi!"

"My name is Hijikata Toshizou."

"We've already met but let me introduce myself once again. My name is Okita Souji."

"I'm Okita Souji Alter...as you already know Shirou-san..."

"My name is Suzuka Gozen."

"My name is Tomoe Gozen."

"My name is Mochizuki Chiyome..."

"W-We've already met. M-My name is Osakabehime..."

"My name is Okada Izo! Master swordsman and manslayer!"

"My name is Sakamoto Ryoma kid. And the girl over here is my partner, Oryou. Say hello to the kid."

"Hello..."

"It's good seeing you again Emiya Shirou," Beni-enma said.

"My name is Murasaki Shiburu. It's a pleasure meeting you."

"My name is Nagao Kagetora."

"My name is Katsushika Hokusai."

"My name is Sei Shonagon!"

"My name is Kijyo Koyo..."

Oda Nobunaga smiled. "And as mentioned earlier, my name is Oda Nobunaga! It's a pleasure meeting you here!"

Shirou was surprised at the number of Japanese servants in the room. "Wow. I'm seeing nearly all the historical figures of Japan here...although they all look different from what the books tell us...especially Oda Nobunaga..."

"Shirou? What's wrong? You getting cold feet?"

"It's not that. I'm just surprised to see this many historical figures in one room."

"I see. Are you nervous?"

"Well no. Honestly, I've seen so much stuff that this doesn't faze me."

"Well there's no problem then! Now then, let's get the party started!" Nobunaga exclaimed excitedly.

Soon, the party started with a bang. Despite being confused at first, Shirou enjoyed the party the Japanese servants were hosting for him. Everyone was eating, drinking, and partying with one another while chatting with one each other.

As Shirou was eating the food that was placed on his table, he thought, "This tastes good!" "Excuse me, who made this food?"

"I did!" Tamamo no Mae said. "Is there a problem with that?"

"Nope. It's actually pretty good. You did a good job cooking these dishes."

Tamamo no Mae's face brighten up upon hearing Shirou saying those words. "Thank you Shirou! It's a pleasure to hear those words from one of Beni-enma's rivals!"

It was then that Osakabehime came up to Shirou.

"Um...Shirou-san?"

"Hm? What is it Osakabehime?"

"Um...if you don't mind...would you please sign this for me?!" she exclaimed as she brought out a portrait of Shirou she made earlier.

Shirou was confused. "Why?"

"Well, after hearing about your victory against the King of Heroes, you gave me a bunch of ideas to draw. And for that, I thank you."

"I-I see..."

"Y-Yeah. So...can you please sign this?"

Shirou took a look at it and said, "Well...there's no harm doing this, so yes."

"Really?! You will?!"

"Yeah. Do you have a pen or something?"

"Y-Yeah!" she said as she brought out a pen out of her pocket. Shirou then grabbed the pen and signed it. He then gave the signed portrait back to her. "Thank you!" she exclaimed as she went back to her seat.

Shirou smiled as he went back to eating the food. "Speaking of which, where's are my counterparts? Did Okita or Musashi told you about them?" he asked Nobunaga.

"Well she did. We did invite them, but they said they were not interested and had something else to do," Nobunaga replied.

"Figures..." Shirou thought as he resumed eating his food. As he was doing so, Hijikata came up to him holding something in his hands. "Hm?"

"Emiya Shirou-dono, as a gift for you, I have brought you a gift."

"Really? What is it?"

"Just open it and see."

Shirou then grabbed the gift from Hijikata's hands and opened it up. As he did, what he saw surprised him.

It was a Shinsengumi outfit.

"T-This is?! A Shinsengumi outfit?! Is Hijikata Toshizou trying to make me a member of the Shinsengumi?!"

"Well? Do you like it?"

"Well...I am fascinated by it, but why are you giving me this?"

Hijikata Toshizou smiled. "Because as of today, you are now an honorary member of the Shinsengumi."

Shirou was baffled. "Huh?!"

"You heard me. As of today, you are an honorary member of the Shinsengumi."

"Eh?! What for?!"

"For helping master out. Is there any other reason?"

Okita sighed. "Sorry Shirou-san, he's just like this sometimes. Please don't take it seriously."

"I-I see. Anyways, thanks for the gift Hijikata-san."

"No problem," he said as he returned to this table.

At the same time, Izo went up to Shirou and asked him, "Is it true that Sengo Muramasa is your ancestor?"

"Yeah."

"Then the blade your carrying right now is a Muramasa blade, right?"

Musashi's eyes lit up. "Yes! The katana Shirou-kun is carrying right now is the same Muramasa blade that cut through the King of Heroes' arm! And a reality marble too!"

"Is that so..." Izo said as he looked at Shirou with interest.

"W-What?"

Izo grinned. "Emiya Shirou, I challenge you to a duel!"

Shirou was baffled again. "Huh?!"

"You heard me! I challenge you to a duel!"

"Hey! No fair! I want to do that first!" Musashi said.

"Sorry, but even if you may be Musashi, dueling with a person that managed to defeat the King of Heroes is something I wish for! Furthermore, he's carrying a Muramasa blade!"

"No fair, I want to do that," Okita Alter said.

"As do I," Hijikata said.

"Me too," Raikou said.

"So do I," Sasaki said.

"Hey! I want to fight him!" Kintoki said.

"So do I. I've heard that the weapon that Shirou uses can also kill gods. It interests me..." Ryougi said.

"Yeah. I wonder what it's like to fight against that," Ryoma said.

"As a fellow warrior, I want to fight him too!" Nagao said.

"Me too!" Tomoe said.

"Calm down all of you!" Okita said.

Soon, the servants that wanted to fight Emiya Shirou began to fight among each other while the other servants watched in amusement.

Especially Murasaki and Osakabehime in which they were thinking of ideas from this.

"Hahahahahaha! What a lively bunch, aren't they Emiya Shirou!" Nobunaga said.

"Yeah..." Shirou said.

And the party continued...

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking towards his room after the party he had with the others was over. "Man. That party was crazy. Never knew that Oryou was a part of Sakamoto Ryoma's noble phantasm...speaking of which, I'm starting to think that I'm becoming the punching bag of Chaldea in which people wants to fight me..." he thought as he was walking while carrying the gift Hijikata gave him earlier.

Eventually, he was almost at his room. However, there was one person he did not expect to cross paths with.

It was Zhuge Liang, who looked like Waver Velvet.

"Waver-sensei?" Shirou asked.

Waver went up to Shirou and asked, "Shirou, is it true that you actually defeated the King of Heroes?"

"Y-Yeah. What about it?"

Waver then did something that no one have ever seen before.

He gave Shirou a pat on the shoulder. Even Shirou was surprised by Waver's sudden action. "W-What?"

"Thank you."

"W-What for?"

"For getting revenge for my servant, even if you don't know what I'm talking about." He then walked away.

Shirou had one thought in mind. "Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?!"


	35. Cuddles and Lap Pillows

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Okay, when I was writing this, DW released Caster Arturia from LB6. However, it doesn't make sense, because if they went by that logic, then shouldn't Muramasa, who appeared in both Shimosa and LB5, be released already? What is DW thinking? Give us our Muramasa already! Anyways, for those who were asking if she'll arrive, she will in a future chapter.

"Shirou! Is the food ready?" Ritsuka asked.

"Almost. Just give it a few more minutes master," Shirou replied.

"Okay."

Shirou then went back to the campfire along with the pot of stew he had been cooking earlier. Right now, it was nighttime and Shirou oversaw cooking duty while Ritsuka watched the stew cook itself. Meanwhile, Lancer Arturia Alter and Mashu oversaw gathering firewood and anything else edible to eat.

Ritsuka looked at the stew in wonder. "Wow. Even in the forest here, Shirou can cook up a meal...and he can trace not only weapons, but household items as well..." he thought.

"Is there something wrong master?"

"Hm? Ah, it's nothing."

"Okay then," Shirou said as he focused back to the stew. "Wonder how the others are doing?" he thought.

Meanwhile, Mashu was kind of struggling as she was carrying small logs of wood. "Wonder if this is enough..." she thought. She then went up to Lancer Arturia Alter, who was holding her share of the wood. "Is this enough?"

"Hm...that should be enough at least," Lancer Arturia Alter replied. "Anyways, let's hurry back to the campsite where Shirou and master are."

"Y-Yes!"

Lancer Arturia Alter and Mashu then went to the campsite where Shirou and Ritsuka were. As they arrived, they smelled the scent of the stew Shirou was cooking.

And it smelled good. Lancer Arturia Alter was drooling a tiny bit before Ritsuka got her attention.

"You got the wood everyone?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yes!" Mashu said.

"Y-Yeah..." Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Great. Then put it in the fire where Shirou's at."

Lancer Arturia Alter and Mashu then went over where Shirou was and placed the wood into the fire. As they did that, the flames grew a bit, making them move back a bit.

"Okay. Now all that's left to do is to wait for the stew to boil and everything will be done..." Shirou thought as he looked at the pot.

As Shirou was staring at the pot, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Lancer Arturia Alter were chatting with each other.

"Still though, even in the woods, Shirou-san sure knows what to cook with what ingredients there are in the woods," Mashu said.

"Yeah. And the fact that he even traced the pot, bowls, and utensils for us to use. Shirou is quite thoughtful," Ritsuka said.

"You can say that again. Although can Shirou hurry up with the food? I'm getting hungry from the aroma itself..." Lancer Arturia Alter said with a hint of moaning.

Ritsuka chuckled. "Just wait Lancer Alter, Shirou said he'll be done within a few more minutes."

"Okay master..."

Meanwhile Shirou was watching the stew, and it was done. "Everyone, the stew is ready!" he said.

Soon, everyone went over to where Shirou was, especially Lancer Arturia Alter. Shirou then gave everyone a bowl and a spoon for each person to use. Then he brought out a ladle he traced earlier and scooped up some of the stew that was in the pot and handed them out to everyone.

Soon, everyone started to eat the stew Shirou made, and everyone enjoyed it.

"Delicious! This is good Shirou-san!" Mashu said.

"Yeah! Even in the woods, you can cook up a meal like this!" Ritsuka said as he took a sip of his stew.

"As expected from my scabbard and queen," Lancer Arturia Alter said with pride as she eagerly finished her bowl of stew. "More Shirou," she said as he held up her empty bowl to Shirou.

"Yes, yes..." he said as he grabbed Lancer Arturia Alter's empty bowl and used his ladle to pour more stew into her bowl. "Here you go."

"Thanks Shirou," she said as she began eating her stew again.

"Seriously though, did you have experience cooking in the woods before Shirou-san?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. A few times actually," Shirou replied.

"Really? How so?" Ritsuka.

"Well, during my travels, there were times where there wasn't a place to stay by, so I had to do things the old-fashioned way."

"Was it hard?"

"It was a little bit at first. Over time though, I got used to it," Shirou replied as took a sip of his own bowl of stew. "It wasn't hard finding ingredients or starting up camp if that's what you were talking about."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Anyways, you want some more?"

"Y-Yes!"

"I-I want some more too!" Masu said as she held up her bowl.

"So do I," Lancer Arturia Alter said as she held up her bowl again.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "On it."

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was late in the night and Shirou was tending to the campfire while Ritsuka and Mashu were asleep. Lancer Arturia Alter was on watch in case if some enemies tried to ambush them. As Shirou was tending to the campfire, he looked up towards the night sky, seeing the multiple stars in the black sky.

"Tonight seems to be pretty. And there's a full moon too...reminds me of those days during my travels..."

As Shirou was tending to the fire, Lancer Arturia Alter came back. "Shirou."

"Hm? Arturia?"

"Call me Lancer Alter in this case. I don't want you to get confused with my counterparts."

"I see. Are there any enemies over there?"

"None at the moment."

"Okay. Guess it's my turn to keep watch then..." Shirou said as he proceeded to move from his spot. However, before he was able to, Lancer Arturia Alter stopped him from getting up by sitting next to him and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Lancer Alter?"

"Stay. You've done enough for a bit. You deserve a break."

"But-"

"No buts Shirou. Or else I'll get mad."

Not wanting to make Lancer Arturia Alter mad, Shirou complied to her demands and sat down on the floor again. For a moment, nothing happened between the two as they were stargazing at the night sky, looking at the tiny stars. One of Lancer Arturia Alter's hands was on top of Shirou's hand to make sure he doesn't escape from her sight.

As they were stargazing, Lancer Arturia Alter broke the silence. "It looks pretty from over here huh?"

"Yeah. Reminds me of the travels I went through."

"Really?"

"Yeah. There were some days like this where I wouldn't be able to get some sleep in the woods and would look at the night sky like this to pass the time."

"I see...hey Shirou, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well...during your travels, did you spend every night like this?"

"Well...most of the time yes. Most of time during my travels, I would end in a forest or somewhere like that would just camp out over there. Food and water were not an issue as I mentioned earlier as there were animals and fish I could eat. There were some cases where I would find a nearby town and stay at what inn or hotel they offered."

"Is that so? Were you alone during your travels?"

Shirou let out a sigh. "Yeah. Always. I did make some friends though, but they didn't come with me...and there were a lot of enemies I had to face..."

For a moment, Lancer Arturia Alter didn't say anything upon hearing this. She just looked at the stars while processing the information she just received in her head. "Shirou, all this time...you've been traveling alone...for many years...and fighting any enemy that crossed your path..." she thought.

"Lancer Alter, is there something wrong?" Shirou asked.

"No. I'm just...thinking about something," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Okay..."

And the two resumed stargazing. During this moment, Lancer Arturia Alter's hand never let go of Shirou's hand. Eventually, Shirou was getting tired.

"Well, it's getting late..."

"You're right. Shall we turn in for the night?"

"Good idea. I'll try to find something for-" Shirou said but was cut off.

In an instant, Lancer Arturia Alter grabbed Shirou and gave him a hug, smothering him right between her ample breasts.

"L-Lancer Alter?" Shirou muffled with a blush on his face.

"Shirou. You deserve this reward. For many years, you endured yourself on this trip by yourself, dealing with the pain it gave you. For that, I give you this embrace."

"L-Lancer Alter..."

"For now, just go to sleep please. That is a direct order from your king."

Shirou sighed, knowing that there was no way getting out from her embrace and the sleep that was coming to him. "All right." Closing his eyes, Shirou fell asleep, his face on Lancer Arturia Alter's breasts.

Lancer Arturia Alter smiled. "Good boy," she said as her hands went to Shirou's head and started playing with his hair while holding it at the same time. "Good night Shirou."

"Good night...Arturia..." Shirou muttered in his sleep.

Lancer Arturia Alter didn't bother correcting him at that moment. Seeing Shirou sleeping put a smile on her face.

And that is what she wanted.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking back towards his room, exhausted as he was done with his duties for today. "Phew...today was exhausting...at least I'll be able to get some sleep today..."

Eventually, Shirou made it to his room. The doors automatically opened, and he went inside...

Only to see Lancer Arturia kneeling on his bed in seiza form.

"A-Arturia?" Shirou stammered, not expecting her in his room like this.

"Shirou. Come over here for a moment," Lancer Arturia said.

"Okay...but why?"

"Just do it."

Still confused with what was going on, Shirou then went over to his bed and sat next to her.

"Okay...now put your head where my lap is," she said while petting her lap.

Shirou blushed when he heard that. "R-Really?"

"Yes."

Shirou had an embarrassed look on his face but followed Lancer Arturia's order. He then laid his head down onto Lancer Arturia's lap. When he did that, he felt an extreme rush of blushing flowing through his face as his head was touching her lap. His mind was in a jumble as he felt her soft lap on the side of his head. Meanwhile, Lancer Arturia was playing with his hair.

_"Shirou's hair is so soft...I want to continue playing with it forever..."_

_"W-What do I do in this situation?! I mean, I don't want to make her sad by leaving her, and it does feel nice and soft here...wait! What am I thinking?! That's something I shouldn't be thinking about right now!"_

As Lancer Arturia was playing with his hair, she asked Shirou a question.

"Hey Shirou, can I ask you something?"

Shirou was snapped out of his thoughts upon hearing Lancer Arturia's thoughts and asked, "What?"

"How are you feeling today?"

"Hm? Well...fine I guess..." Shirou muttered.

"Are you sure? Don't you lie to me, I can see through it," Lancer Arturia said with a hint of worry in her voice.

Shirou sighed, now knowing he can't lie to her whenever she gives off that tone.

"Well, to be honest...it feels like every day has got even crazier after that day."

"You mean when you unleashed Tsumugari Muramasa on Archer Gilgamesh that day?"

"Yeah. Now these days, I literally get challenged by nearly every servant because apparently, word spread throughout of Chaldea that the King of Heroes was defeated and humiliated by my noble phantasms. It didn't even help that word about me cutting his arm during the process made the excitement go even further."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Not only that, but there were servants who had a grudge against him were congratulating me and were asking me for a quick look at Tsumugari Muramasa. In fact, you want to know what some servants called it?"

"What?"

""The god-killer blade." That's what they called it. And it doesn't even end there. Some other servants called it, "The one thing that EA can't beat," or "The one treasure that Gilgamesh doesn't possess," or "The blade that put the arrogant King of Heroes in his place.""

Lancer Arturia giggled at the names Tsumugari Muramasa has received since its debut. "Well, sounds like the King of Heroes won't be happy about those names."

"You can say that again," Shirou said as he thought about his reactions towards those names. "Anyways, Tsumugari Muramasa wasn't the only one that earned a few names. You want to know what some servants tell me?"

"What?"

"They tell me I'm a better version of Gilgamesh. Can you believe that?"

"Well...I can."

"How so?"

"Shirou, you can summon weapons out of nowhere like he does. However, unlike that arrogant King of Heroes over there, you aren't arrogant. You're humble, you show kindness to everyone, and you help everyone around in Chaldea. Plus, you're a good cook."

Shirou was surprised with the reasons that Lancer Arturia just said.

"Shirou? Are you okay?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I'm just not used to hearing praise like this before."

"You don't like it?"

"N-No. I'm just not used to it. That's all."

"I see."

For a moment, there was silence between the two as Lancer Arturia continued playing with Shirou's hair as his head was still on Lancer Arturia's lap. The two remined undisturbed as they were enjoying their quiet time together.

"Is there anything else you want to talk about Shirou?"

"Well...something weird happened to me earlier."

Arturia was slightly worried when she heard that. "What happened? Were you hit with something?"

"Well...I had a weird proposition from a servant earlier..." he said as his mind went back to what happened a few hours ago...

_(A few hours ago...)_

Shirou was walking down in the hallways of Chaldea, minding his own business. As he did, he came across a pair he sort of recognized.

Waver Velvet and Alexander, the King of Conquerors.

"Waver-sensei?"

"Hey kid, is this the person who beat the King of Heroes and possesses two noble phantasms in which one of them is a realty marble and the other surpasses the King of Heroes' greatest treasure?" Alexander asked.

"Yeah."

"And his name is Emiya Shirou?"

"Yeah."

Upon hearing this, Alexander proceeded to take a closer look at Shirou, examining him from all sides.

"W-What?" Shirou asked.

Alexander grinned. "My name is Alexander! The King of Conquerors! Emiya Shirou! Upon hearing your victory against the King of Heroes from my former master, I have made a proposition for you! Will you join my army?"

Shirou was baffled upon hearing this. "What?"

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's what happened," Shirou said as he explained the story to Lancer Arturia.

Lancer Arturia was surprised at the Shirou just told her. "So let me get this straight. Alexander, the King of Conquerors, wanted you to join his army?"

"Yes."

"And what did you say?"

"Well, I turned down his offer."

"I see. Were there any offers like that later on?"

"Well, there was one earlier before that. What happened was that one day, I was dragged into a room filled with Japanese servants and had a party over there. It was then that one of them named Hijikata Toshizou gave me a Shinsengumi outfit as a gift and made me an honorary member of the Shinsengumi."

"Really? What happened next?"

"Luckily, Okita managed to be there and told me not to worry about it. She told me he does that to anyone doing good in Chaldea, especially swordsmen."

"I see...Shirou, let me ask you one question that I really want to ask you today."

"Sure. Go ahead."

Lancer Arturia took a deep breath before saying her question. "You haven't used Tsumugari Muramasa today, haven't you?"

Shirou was silent for a bit before saying his answer. "No, I haven't. Why?"

Lancer Arturia sighed in relief upon hearing no as his answer. "Good. That noble phantasm scares me and my counterparts you know. If possible...we hope that you don't use Tsumugari Muramasa ever again."

Shirou let out a small sigh and asked, "You're worried about what Sengo Muramasa said earlier?"

"Yes. When he said that he used it and died afterwards, the thought of you meeting the same fate as him...me and my counterparts don't even want to think about that. While were a little bit relieved that the side effect of Tsumugari Muramasa when you use it is a complete drain of mana. But even then, the complete drain mana still worries me and my counterparts."

"Arturia..."

"Shirou, please promise all of us that you won't use Tsumugari Muramasa. At least limit the usage of it. Please."

Shirou thought about what Lancer Arturia said and replied, "Okay. I'll limit the use of Tsumugari Muramasa to only in dire situations. In fact, that's what I've been doing ever since I've obtained it."

Lancer Arturia smiled. "Good. That's all I need to hear." She then continued to play with Shirou's hair. As she did, Shirou eventually fell asleep on her lap as time passed by. Noticing this, Lancer Arturia gently moved his body so that she can see Shirou's face. She smiled upon seeing his sleeping face, looking peacefully. "Shirou..."

It was then that a servant came into the room.

"Hey Shirou! Are you busy? Mom needs some help...with something..." Irisviel said as she stopped saying anything upon seeing Lancer Arturia giving Shirou a lap pillow. "Ah...oh..."

Lancer Arturia placed a finger on her lips. "Shh. Shirou's sleeping right now. Please don't disturb him."

Irisviel smiled upon hearing this and said, "Got it! But first, let me take pictures of this!" She then grabbed a smartphone out of nowhere and took multiple pictures of the event. "See you!" she whispered when she was done and left Shirou's room.

Lancer Arturia sighed and resumed looking at Shirou's sleeping face. As she did, she noticed it was getting late already. "Oh dear, it's already this late..." She then gently moved Shirou off her lap and placed him on his bed. As she covered him with the bed sheets, she noticed that she was getting tired too.

Knowing this, she made a decision despite her drowsiness.

She went under the bed sheets and held Shirou in her arms, her ample breasts touching his back and her hands touching his chest. As she was holding him, she felt the warmness of his body, making her even more drowsy. Eventually, she couldn't stay awake any longer and closed her eyes.

_"Good night Shirou. Sweet dreams."_

And she fell asleep.


	36. Fourth Holy Grail War Party

Shirou felt awkward at the room he was in.

Which included himself, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, Waver, Diarmuid, Alexander, Caster Gilgamesh, Saber Lancelot, Saber Gilles, and Assassin Hassan (Asa-ko and Zayd).

And they were all in a party of some sort, in which Alexander, the King of Conquerors, was hosting.

And he dubbed it "The Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War Party."

Shirou sighed. "I shouldn't have accepted that invitation that appeared at the front of my doorstep earlier..." he thought.

_(A few hours ago...)_

Shirou was getting himself ready for the day. As he made his bed, he proceeded to leave his room. However, when he was about to leave the room, an envelope appeared in front of him.

"An envelope? Don't tell me it's from Merlin again..." Shirou thought as he picked it up. He then opened the envelope to see the contents inside. Inside the envelope was a folded piece of paper. As Shirou unfolded it, the paper was an envelope.

It said:

_Greetings Emiya Shirou! The one who wrote this letter is none other than me, Alexander, the King of Conquerors! You have been invited to a party for everyone who was involved with the 4th Fuyuki Holy Grail War! The party will be hosted by me! There will be free food and drinks nearby, so come to the party and enjoy yourself! The party takes place at night at 7:00 pm in my room!"_

_From, Alexander, the King of Conquerors._

Shirou sighed as he finished reading the letter. "An invitation from the King of Conquerors...huh...well a party like this shouldn't be bad. And I could use this as an opportunity to find out what my old man did during the fourth Fuyuki Grail War as well..." he thought.

As the day went on, it was getting close to 7:00 pm. It was time for Shirou to head towards to Alexander's room. After asking other servants where Alexander's room was, he finally arrived at the front of his room.

However, as he got inside, what he saw shocked him.

First, Alexander's room was huge. Very huge. Probably the size of a castle room.

Second, there were multiple tables filled with plates of foods and drinks.

And third, was the people that were in the room, which included Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Waver, Lancelot, Diarmuid, Saber Giles, Alexander, Assassin Hassan (Asa-ko and Zayd), and Caster Gilgamesh.

"Hey Shirou! You're just in time!" Alexander said with a smile on his face.

"Ah! Emiya-kun?! What are you doing here?!"

"Senpai?!"

"Shirou? What are you doing here?" Irisviel asked.

"Shirou! You should try this! It tastes good!" Arturia said as she was grabbing some food onto her plate.

Kiritsugu didn't say anything.

"My queen. What are you doing here?" Lancelot asked.

"Ah! Hey Emiya Shirou! It's been a while! How are you?" Diarmuid said.

Waver and the assassins didn't say a word.

"Heh? So that's the Emiya Shirou that everyone's been talking about lately..." Gilles said.

"Well, looks like he has arrived and he's late," Caster Gilgamesh said.

Shirou sighed at the comment Caster Gilgamesh said and went into the room. This was one party he was never going to forget.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Wow. I can't believe that there was this many servants that came to a party related to the fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War. Especially since Tohsaka, Sakura, and Waver-sensei are here as well, although I don't know why though..."

"Shirou? Is there something wrong?" Arturia asked.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing. I'm just surprised that Tohsaka, Sakura, and Waver-sensei were here as well. Furthermore, I can't even believe Waver-sensei agreed to this type of thing," Shirou replied.

"I can't blame you. I'm surprised as well. Anyways Shirou, try this out. It's good," Arturia said as she showed him a piece of food to him. Shirou then went closer to where the food was a took a bite of it. "Well, how does it taste?"

Shirou smiled. "It tastes good."

Arturia smiled. "I'm glad you like it."

As Shirou and Arturia were enjoying themselves with each other, Diarmuid and Alexander looked at the scene in amusement.

"Well, this looks interesting to watch," Alexander said with a grin on his face.

"Yeah. The King of Knights acting like this...it intrigues me. What connection do the King of Knights and Emiya Shirou have?" Diarmuid asked.

"Who knows?"

Meanwhile, Waver was having a chat with Ishtar and Parvati, or rather Rin and Sakura.

"Can you still believe this Waver? That Emiya Shirou, the one student that you kept lecturing to him about his reckless actions at the Clock Tower, is actually a servant here."

"You're telling me. I'm surprised he managed to here, let alone you and your sister as well."

"Yeah. Imagine my surprise when I first saw you here."

"You're telling me. I've would have never thought seeing you in here again of all places, especially since you and your sister are goddesses now and the fact that you have alternate counterparts of yourselves. Speaking of which, are you and Luvia getting along?"

Ishtar let out a high-pitched grumble and started scratching her head furiously. At that point, Waver had his answer. "I guess not huh?"

Parvati let out a sheepish laugh. "Sorry Waver-san, nee-san seems to still have a rivalry grudge against her."

"I can see that," he said. "And I have a feeling it's all because of a certain red-haired reckless idiot over there..." he thought.

It was then that Alexander decided to have a few toast of words.

"Hey everyone! I would like to have a toast here to everyone who has precipitated and survived the 4th Fuyuki Holy Grail War! I congratulate all of you who have managed to be here! For now, let us have a toast!" Alexander said as he raised his glass. "Cheers!"

Everyone else raised their glasses and then started to drink. As they drank, Shirou then asked Alexander a question.

"Um Alexander, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure! What is it Emiya Shirou?"

"Well...I remember that Arturia told me that Archer Gilgamesh participated in the 4th Fuyuki Holy Grail War, so why is the Caster counterpart of him here instead?"

It was then Waver, Diarmuid, and Arturia then looked at him. Caster Gilgamesh let out a sigh.

"Hey! Be glad that I'm here instead my Archer counterpart! Originally, my Archer counterpart was supposed to receive the invitation, but I took it before he can receive it. Trust me, if he was here right now, he would have exploded upon seeing both Shirou and Ishtar. But mostly Shirou."

Everyone let out a sigh upon hearing this. "He's still mad about what happened earlier?" Shirou asked.

"Mad? More like he's furious about it. In fact, he's like a ticking time bomb, ready to explode at any time possible. I prefer to avoid seeing him for a while until he calms down."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Guess he'll always hate me forever...speaking of which, is his arm fine?"

"Yeah. It regenerated a while ago."

"Well that's great for him at least."

Caster Gilgamesh laughed at what Shirou said. "You shouldn't say that in front of him. It'll probably make him even more mad then before."

"You're probably right."

"So anyways! Anyone want to talk about something?" Alexander said.

"Yes. First of all, what is the relationship between the King of Knights and Emiya Shirou?" Diarmuid asked.

Caster Gilgamesh, Diarmuid, Alexander, Gilles, and the assassins looked at Shirou and Arturia. Arturia took a few breaths as she grabbed Shirou's hand. She then said her answer.

"Emiya Shirou is my former master in the Fifth Fuyuki Holy Grail War. He is also my sheath and my queen," Arturia said proudly.

Caster Gilgamesh, Diarmuid, Alexander, Giles, and the assassins were surprised at what Arturia just said. "Really?" they asked.

"Yes," Arturia said with a nod of approval from Shirou.

"Wow...I'm not sure to call it ironic or funny at the same time..." Diarmuid said.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well...I'll say this. The fact that the King of Knights happened to serve the son of the mage who defiled my duel against her. And yet, the son has a strong sense of duty and honor, which baffles me."

"Is that so...speaking of which, was that the grudge you have against my old man?"

"Yes. During the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War, I was engaged in a duel of honor against the King of Knights. However, during the duel, your father disgraced the duel by holding his fiancée hostage, then forcing my master to sign a geas and then forced him to kill myself in order to obtain victory."

Shirou was surprised to hear that his old man has done something like that. "I-I never knew that."

"Yeah. It was one of the main reasons why I hated your father. Sorry for you to hear that."

"Nah. I'm used to hear stories about my old man during my time at the clock tower."

"I see..." Diarmuid then took a sip of his drink. "And even though that servant over there looks like him but is not him, I can't help but scowl at him," he said as he looked at Kiritsugu.

"Hey. I'm not him," Kiritsugu replied.

"Is that how Waver-sensei became the second Lord El-Melloi?" Ishtar asked.

Waver sighed again as he took a smoke. "Not this again. For the last time, I did not earn the title "Lord El-Melloi II" like that easily."

"Speaking of which, I would have never expected Rider's master to be here of all places. And he has grown into a fine man."

Shirou, Ishtar, and Parvati were surprised upon hearing this. "You participated in the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War Waver-sensei?" Shirou and Ishtar asked.

Waver tried to speak, but Alexander cut him off.

"Yeah! The first time I saw him when he summoned me, he was quite the small kid. Probably even younger than all of you here!"

"Really?!" Shirou and Ishtar asked. "Waver-sensei was a kid when he participated in the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War?!"

"Yeah! He was the size of a little kid when he participated in the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War you know! And he was scrawny too! Not like what you're seeing here right now!"

Shirou and Ishtar then thought the image of a young Waver. "A young Waver...what would he look like...?"

However, it was then that Waver got up and gave Shirou and Ishtar a slap on the head. "All of you don't dare think of anything funny, or else I'll hit all of you again..." he said in a menacingly voice.

"Y-Yes..." they all said.

After all, they did once seen Waver get mad and it wasn't a pretty sight for them, mentally scarring them for life.

"I would rather deal with Archer Gilgamesh than Waver-sensei when he's mad..." Shirou thought.

"A mad Waver-sensei is something I would rather not deal with again..." Ishtar thought.

"Although one thing that interests me, my former master..."

"Huh? What is it Rider?"

"Since when you were a fan of playing video games that involve strategy?"

At that moment, Waver spat out his drink. "W-What?! What are you talking about?!"

"Don't play dumb with me! There are times where I would see you playing a video game in your room! And it's a strategy game!" Alexander said, grabbing the attention of Shirou and Rin in the room.

"Is that true Waver-sensei?" Shirou asked.

"And don't you dare lie to us," Ishtar said.

Waver sighed as there was no way to hide his secret now. "Yes. I play strategy video games in my spare time. Is there a problem with that?"

"Well no. I'm just surprised hearing that you have a hobby like that," Shirou said.

"Yeah. But that does explain why every time you were done with a lecture, the first thing you do is to go to your room immediately," Ishtar said.

"Yeah...and it's the only thing that's keeping me from going crazy from all of the work I have to do..." he muttered.

Shirou then said something. "So everyone here was involved in the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War in one way or another?"

"Yes! Everyone here was a part of the war in one way or another. Although there were some people who couldn't join, so their counterparts came in as representatives." Alexander said.

"Really?"

"Yes my queen. Originally, my berserker counterpart was originally to come here, but apparently...well...he wasn't able to notice the invitation..."

"The same goes for me Emiya Shirou. Originally, my Caster version was supposed to come here, but he's busy with what goes on with that crazy head of his in which, I'll admit, deeply ashamed for. So I came in his place."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Trust me, you do not want to meet him." Saber Giles said as he took a sip of his drink.

"I see...by the way, who are you?" "Oh. My name is Gilles de Rais." "Okay, so what class are you Gilles?"

"Me? I'm a saber class."

"And you Lancelot?"

"The same my queen. I'm a saber class servant as well."

"Is that so? And what about you two? Ishtar? Sakura?"

"For me, my father was involved in the war and I end up getting myself involved in it minorly." Ishtar said.

"I-It was the same for me too, although my uncle was involved in it," Parvati said.

"I see. Just out of curiosity, who were the master and servant pairs at the time?"

"Well...it was King of Knights and that woman over there. Then it was me and Alexander, then there was my old teacher and Diarmuid, then there was Caster Gilles and someone called Ryuunosuke, then there was Berserker Lancelot and Kariya Matou, and then there was the Archer Gilgamesh and Tokimi Tohsaka," Waver said.

Shirou and Ishtar was surprised upon hearing the last pair.

"What?! Gilgamesh was my father's servant?!"

"Yes."

"Tokimi Tohsaka...isn't that your father's name Ishtar?"

"Yes. He took part of this war as well."

"I see. And Kariya Matou...is that your uncle's name Sakura?"

"Yes."

"Yeah. Although I don't know who Assassin's master was. Who was he?"

It was then that Assassins Hassan (Asa-ko and Zayd) decided to speak up. "It was someone from the Church, who went by the name of Kotomine Kirei."

At that moment, Shirou, Arturia, and Ishtar mentally groaned upon hearing that name. "Really? Him again?"

"Not only that, but he along with his father, who was a moderator of the Church at the time, was in an alliance with Tokimi during the entirety of the war until Tokimi's death."

That sentence nearly got everyone worked up, save for Irisviel and Kiritsugu.

"Wait. So, are you telling me that nearly during the entirety of the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War, those two were in cahoots with each other?!" Waver exclaimed.

"Yes."

There was silence in the room as they were processing over the fact that the Church actually broke one of its rules. Eventually, Ishtar broke the silence. "That...damn...fake priest! I knew he was fishy business, but this?! He was both a master and a member of the Church?! And he was in an alliance with my father?! That shouldn't even be even allowed! I'm glad that he's dead now!"

"I know. Just how did the Church not manage to realize this?" Shirou asked.

"Honestly, I have no clue," Waver said.

"Well. Guess we'll never know now that war was over," Alexander said. "Anyways, anyone else want to talk?"

"Yes! Just who was the winner of the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War? I want to know!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly.

While the servants of the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War had faces of curiosity over who was the winner of that war, Shirou, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, and Waver put up a long face.

"What wrong? Was there no winner of the war?" Irisviel asked.

For a moment, there was silence in the room. Then Arturia decided to say the answer. "Well...in the end, me and Kiritsugu won the war."

"Great! And what wish did Kiritsugu made?"

"Well that's the thing...he didn't make a wish when the holy grail appeared. What happened was...he tried to destroy it."

At that moment, the servants who were in the Fourth Fuyuki Grail War were surprised upon hearing his. "Eh?! Buy why? Why would he destroy the Holy Grail?! It was in front of him, and he wasted it?! How come?!" Alexander yelled.

"Well...I suppose during the war, he realized that the grail was already corrupted from the very start of the war, and he tried to destroy it. However, it had an effect he did not expect."

"And what was the effect?"

Arturia then looked at Shirou before he took a deep breath. "The Great Fuyuki Fire."

Everyone besides Shirou, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, and Waver looked at him in confusion. "What's that?" Alexander asked.

Shirou sighed again. "It's the aftermath when my old man used his last command seal on Arturia to command her to destroy the grail. What happened was that there was a huge of explosion that took the lives of 500 people and 134 buildings. Furthermore, the explosion also created a giant fire that took a portion of Fuyuki and burned it to the ground.

Everyone looked at Shirou in shock over how the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War came to an end. "W-Wow. I didn't know that happened..." Diarmuid said.

"Yeah. And all for a grail that doesn't even fulfill wishes..." Shirou muttered.

Everyone's eyes widen upon hearing that. "WHAT?!" they exclaimed.

"Yeah, you heard me. The holy grail was so tainted, it couldn't make a wish come true. And even if you did, all you would get was destruction."

"Whoa. I never knew that. I mean, wasn't the grail able to fulfill people's wishes?" Alexander asked.

"At first maybe. But because of what happened to the grail in the third war, it was unable to fulfill any wishes."

"So the grail-" Diarmuid said but was cut off from Shirou.

"Was completely useless to begin with. It was just a tool of destruction my old man tried to destroy."

Everyone besides Arturia, Ishtar, and Waver were surprised to hear that the holy grail that was fought for in the Fourth Fuyuki Grail War was nothing but just a pack of lies. However, Kiritsugu was the most surprised at what his alternate self tried to do.

"Wow. I can't believe my alternate counterpart did that..." Kiritsugu thought.

"You know, you seem to know a lot about the aftermath of the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War Emiya Shirou. Care to explain why?" Saber Gilles asked.

Shirou was silent, causing Arturia, Ishtar, and Parvati to glare at Giles for a moment. It was then that he realized he touched a sensitive area he shouldn't have. "My apologies, it seems like I have touched a sensitive area about your past right? You don't have to say-"

"It's fine. I suppose I should explain how I knew all of this huh?"

Everyone then looked at Shirou, wanting to know the answer.

"It's because I was the only survivor out of the victims of that incident."

At that moment, everyone's eyes widen upon hearing this. "EHHHHHHHHH?! You survived that?!" they exclaimed.

"Yes."

"Wait a minute, you were the sole survivor of a disaster created by a tainted holy grail?!" Diarmuid asked.

"Yes."

"Did you protect yourself with some magic?" Alexander asked.

"No."

"So you survived on pure luck?!" Waver asked.

"Well...you could say that..."

"And were you a kid back then?" Caster Gilgamesh asked.

"Yes."

Everyone went quiet upon hearing that sentence. After all, they've all just found out that Emiya Shirou was the only survivor of an event like that without any magic or any protection.

"S-So what happened to you during then my queen?" Lancelot asked.

Shirou sighed again. "I just walked to the flames of the aftermath. Ignoring everything around me, just wandering there aimlessly. At one point, I was ready to die. It was then Kiritsugu saved me by implanting Avalon inside of me. And that's how I know so much about the event."

Everyone was silent from the event Shirou just said. Irisviel was crying while Kiritsugu, Diarmuid, Alexander, Lancelot, Giles, Assassins Hassan (Asa-ko and Zayd), and Caster Gilgamesh looked Shirou in shock over what he just said while Arturia, Ishtar, and Parvati looked at Shirou in worry.

"Shirou...are you okay explaining the thing that nearly killed you?" Arturia asked.

"Yeah. I'm fine actually. Rather, my heart feels a bit lighter after saying my past."

"You sure senpai?" Parvati asked.

"Yeah."

"Wow...to think you went through all of that as a child...I now have even more respect for you Emiya Shirou," Diarmuid said.

"Hahahahaha! To survive a disaster like that...you must have the devil's luck Emiya Shirou!" Alexander said.

"Jeez. To think you were a victim of it...I'm sorry," Waver said.

"To think such an event happened to you my queen..." Lancelot said.

"Wow. I never thought you would go through something like that..." Giles said.

"Hmph. For a normal human like you to survive that...that's a bit impressive," Caster Gilgamesh said.

"Wow..." was all the assassins said.

"Yeah. Anyways, shall we continue the-" Shirou said, but was cut off from a sudden hug from Irisviel. "M-Mom?!"

"Wahhhhhhhhhh! Shirou! To think you went through all of that...mom can't help but cry over the tragedy you went through as a kid!" Irisviel said as she hugged Shirou even tighter.

"Guh...I get it mom...can you let me go now..." Shirou moaned as she was struggling to breath.

"Never!"

While Shirou was struggling with Irisviel's embrace of death, everyone looked at the scene with an awkward face.

"W-Wow. I seriously don't want to be in Emiya-kun's position right now..." Ishtar said.

"M-Me too..." Arturia said.

Soon, Iriviel got tired of crying and let go of Shirou out of her embrace, giving him some time to breath.

"Hey Shirou, can I ask you something?" Waver asked.

"Sure. What is it Waver-sensei?"

"Well, considering what happened at the end of the Fourth Fuyuki Grail War and since everyone here was a part of it...do you have a grudge against me who happened to be a master of the war?"

Everyone was quiet upon hearing Waver's question and were waiting for Shirou's answer.

After a few seconds of silence, Shirou said his answer.

"No. I don't have a grudge against you Waver-sensei. Because if anything, you don't seem to be the type of person who would kill other people over something or use others to do it. Rather, you seem to be the type of person who would do things with his own hands," Shirou said with a smile.

At that moment, everyone was amazed by the words Shirou gave to Waver. Even he was slightly impressed by Shirou's answer.

"I see." Waver then placed a hand on Shirou's shoulder. "Thank you for the answer Shirou."

"No problem Waver-sensei."

Alexander then let out a laugh. "Well said Emiya Shirou! Nice choice of words for my master!"

"Why thank you Alexander."

"Heh! No need to complements! Now let's just continue the party, shall we?"

"Yeah."

And the party continued...


	37. Kid Shirou

Right now, it is lunch time in Chaldea's cafeteria. Normally, it meant that Shirou would be at the cafeteria catering to Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, and Kiritsugu alongside with EMIYA and EMIYA Alter helping him.

However, today wasn't the usual case.

Because Shirou is not at the cafeteria yet.

And it was making Arturia and her counterparts worried.

"Shirou...what's taking you so long?" Arturia muttered.

"Relax older me, I think he's busy with something," Arturia Lily said.

"Well, let's hope what business he has will be finished soon. He can't keep all of us waiting," Arturia Alter said.

"Agreed. It's almost lunch, and I'm getting hungry..." Lancer Arturia said.

"Same..." Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Shirou...hurry up...we're hungry here..." Ruler Arturia said.

"Shirou...where are you...?" Archer Arturia said.

"Hurry up, or else your king will get mad soon..." Rider Arturia Alter said.

"Yeah...hurry up Shirou..." Santa Arturia Alter said.

"When is Shirou going to arrive? I'm starving..." Mysterious Heroine X moaned.

"Me too...I want some of Shirou's cooking now..." Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Same..." Mysterious Heroine XX moaned.

While Arturia and her counterparts were at their table, moaning when Shirou was going to arrive, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were looking at the scene.

"Jeez. Wonder what's Emiya-kun up to now?" Ishtar said.

"I don't know. Maybe Da Vinci is keeping him for something I guess," Rider Ishtar said.

"I hope so. He's keeping everyone here waiting..." Ereshkigal said.

"Wonder what Senpai is up to?" Parvati said.

"How should I know?" Kama replied.

"Anyway, senpai should hurry up...or else I'll punish him..." BB said sadistically with a smile on her face.

"BB, please don't..." Passionlip said.

"Tch. Wonder what's taking him so long..." Meltlilith muttered.

"I don't know..." Kingprotea said.

"Hm...it's not like onii-chan to be this late..." Illya said.

"You have a point there. Usually, he would be here right now. Wonder what's keeping him busy?" Kuro replied.

"Who knows? Maybe he's busy with something again," Sitonai said.

"Even still, he's really late," Miyu said.

"Mou...what's Sherou up to now..." Astraea said.

"Shirou...onee-san is hungry right now..." Jaguar-man moaned.

"Shirou, what's taking you so long? Mom can't keep waiting forever you know..." Irisviel said.

Kiritsugu didn't say anything.

Even EMIYA and EMIYA Alter, who are in the kitchen now, were wondering why their younger self hasn't arrived yet.

"Okay, even if he may be my younger self, it's not like him to be this late...what's going on..." EMIYA thought.

"What's going on with my younger self..." EMIYA Alter thought.

As everyone was wondering where Shirou was, it was then that Ritsuka and Mashu came into the room with a weird look on their faces.

"Master? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, hey EMIYA. Well...we have a small problem here..." Ritsuka said.

"What do you mean? What kind of problem is it?"

"Well...it has something to do with Shirou-san..." Mashu said.

That got the girls in the cafeteria riled up.

"Shirou?! What happened to him?!" Arturia and her counterparts yelled.

"Did something bad happened to Emiya-kun?!" Ishtar and her counterparts asked.

"Is senpai all right?!" Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters said.

"What happened to onii-chan?!" Illya, her counterparts, and Miyu yelled.

"Is Sherou all right?!" Astraea said.

"What happened to my son?!" Irisviel asked.

"What has Shirou gotten himself into this time?!" Jaguar-man yelled.

As the girls were done with their yelling, Ritsuka took a long sigh of breath before saying the situation that happened to Shirou.

"It's okay. Nothing bad happened to Shirou. He's fine...I think," Ritsuka said.

"What do you mean by that?!" they exclaimed.

"Well...just take a look and you'll see. Shirou-san, can you come over here please," Mashu said.

Everyone was confused with what Mashu said.

However, it was then that a new figure came into the room and it shocked everyone upon looking at him. Even Kiritsugu and then EMIYAs were shocked upon seeing it.

Because the figure that came into the room was Shirou, but as a child, wearing normal clothes.

"H-Hey...everyone..." Shirou said.

At that moment, the cafeteria went into chaos upon looking at kid Shirou.

"SHIROU?!" Arturia and her counterparts yelled.

"EMIYA-KUN?! Ishtar and her counterparts yelled.

"SENPAI?!" Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters yelled.

"ONII-CHAN?!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu yelled.

"SHEROU?!" Astraea yelled.

"SHIROU?!" Irisviel and Jaguar-man yelled.

"Shirou?!" Kiritsugu yelled.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" EMIYA and EMIYA Alter yelled.

As everyone was in chaos over the fact that Shirou was suddenly reverted into a child, Ritsuka and Mashu then tried to calm everyone down, but it failed as everyone was still going crazy.

"Senpai, what should we do? I don't think we can calm then down..." Mashu asked Ritsuka.

"Honestly, I have no idea Mashu..." Ritsuka replied.

Shirou sighed. He then went towards to where the chaos was. "Everyone! Can all of you calm down please? I'll explain why I look like this right now, so please! Would everyone calm down right now?"

At that moment, upon hearing kid Shirou's voice, everyone stopped going crazy and calmed themselves down.

Especially Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, and Irisviel because upon hearing kid Shirou's voice, it made their hearts go crazy.

"Y-Yeah, S-Shirou," Arturia and her counterparts said.

"S-Sorry Emiya-kun," Ishtar and her counterparts said.

"S-Senpai..." Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters said.

"O-Onii-chan..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

"S-Sherou..." Astraea said.

"S-Shirou..." Irisviel and Jaguar-man said.

Upon taking a closer look upon kid Shirou, all of them have one thought in mind.

_"SHIROU/EMIYA-KUN/SENPAI/ONII-CHAN/SHEROU LOOKS SO CUTE RIGHT NOW!"_

Shirou let out a sigh as everything was quiet again. "Looks like everything calmed down master," Shirou said.

"Y-Yeah," Ritsuka said.

"Well it's a relief that Shirou-san was able to calm everyone down," Mashu said.

"Um Shirou...can you explain how you turned out like this?" Kiritsugu asked.

"Yeah! I want to know how you turned into a kid again!" Jaguar-man yelled.

"Us too!" Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, and Irisviel said.

"Well...that would be my fault," a new voice said.

Everyone then turned to the source of the new voice. As so, a person was shown, and it was Da Vinci.

"Da Vinci? You're responsible for turning my younger self into this?" EMIYA asked.

"Yes."

"How?" EMIYA Alter asked.

"Well...what happened was that earlier, I may have accidently spilled a creation of mine...onto Shirou."

"Huh...and what creation would that be..." Irisiviel asked.

"Well...it was a potion that was supposed to make a servant younger. However, what happened was that when I was done making it, in my excitement, I may have accidentally threw it...at Shirou when he stopped by to drop off something..."

Everyone besides Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu were in shock over what happened.

"So, let me guess this straight. What happened was that you created a potion that makes people younger and in your excitement, you accidently threw it at Shirou when he arrived at your doorstep. Is that correct?" Kiritsugu asked.

"Yes."

"Well that explains a few things, although why did you make such a thing?" Jaguar-man asked.

"Well...it's because I was bored."

Everyone was baffled from Da Vinci's answer. "That's it? You were just bored, so you made that potion?"

"Yes," Da Vinci said.

Shirou sighed at Da Vinci's answer. "What's up the mind of geniuses? Does Da Vinci always think like this? Does she create something out of boredom? I'll never know," he thought as he took a seat at the table where everyone was at. "So yeah, guess I'll be stuck like this for a while."

"Really? How long?" Arturia asked.

"Until Da Vinci makes a cure. Ask her."

Everyone then turned to Da Vinci. "Shirou's right! Just give me a few days to make a cure and he'll be back to normal!"

"Well, if you say so..." Parvati said nervously.

Shirou sighed again as the situation was under control again. "Well, I guess it's time for me to go into the kitchen now. Arturia and her counterparts must be starving at this point..." he thought as he got off of from his seat.

However, before he could even head towards the kitchen, Irisviel came up behind, lifted him up, and gave him a giant hug.

"Wha-mom?!" Shirou said.

"Waaaaaaah! Shirou looks so adorable in this form! I want to keep him like this forever!" Irisviel said with a smile on her face as she kept hugging him while spinning around like a little girl.

"M-Mama! Let onii-chan this instant!" Illya said.

"Yeah! You're hurting him!" Kuro replied in agreement.

"And he looks like he's in pain!" Sitonai said.

"Please let him go!" Miyu said.

"Hm? Onii-chan? But in this case, shouldn't all of you call him "little brother?""

Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu were quiet for a moment. "What?" they said.

"Yeah. In this scenario, all of you should call him "little brother." After all, he is younger than all of you, isn't he?" Iriviel said happily.

Upon heaing this, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu then turned to Da Vinci for answers. "Da Vinci...how old is Shirou right now...?" Illya asked.

Da Vinci thought about what Illya asked and replied, "Well...judging from how he looks...I would say about seven years old, I guess. Why?"

Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu was silent for a moment from hearing this. For a while nothing happened as Irisviel continued to hug Shirou.

Then Illya said something. "Mama, can you let Shirou down for a moment?"

"Hm? Why Illya-chan?"

"J-Just let him down for a moment..."

Despite being confused, Irisviel let go of Shirou and placed him down on the ground. As Shirou touched the ground safetly, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu then came up to Shirou.

"W-What is it?"

"Um...onii-chan, considering what your age is right now...can you do something for us?" they asked.

"Uh, sure. What is it?"

Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu took a deep breath before saying it in unison. "Can you call all of us...onee-chan?"

Shirou was confused. "Why?"

"J-Just do it..."

For a moment, there was silence in the cafeteria as Illy, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu were waiting for his answer.

"F-Fine...onee-chan..." Shirou said with a bit of embarrassment in his voice.

At that moment, Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu felt something in their hearts switch upon hearing Shirou calling them, "Onee-chan." For a moment, they thought they were going to faint from how cute it sounded. Especially from kid Shirou's voice.

Noticing Illya's, Kuro's, Sitonai's, and Miyu's reactions, Shirou asked, "Are all of you all right?"

"Y-Yeah..." they muttered as they returned to their seats with a blush on their faces. "S-So cute..." they thought.

Shirou sighed as the mess he was forced into was over. He then went over to the kitchen area to resume his daily duties...or so as he thought.

Because he was stopped by both EMIYA and EMIYA Alter before he could get in.

"Hold on, you can't come here," EMIYA said.

"Why?" Shirou asked.

"Because you're not in your usual condition to do this," EMIYA Alter said.

"What do you mean by that?! I'm fine you know!" Shirou argued.

"You may be, but let me ask you this; how are you going to reach the stove and the cabinets?" EMIYA asked.

"W-Well..."

"Exactly. You're too short to reach them. So just for once, give up and return to your seat," EMIYA Alter said.

Realizing that his alternate counterparts were right, Shirou went back to his seat. "Fine..." he said with a pouty face. As he went back to his seat, everyone saw his face and were immediately smitten by how cute it looked.

"C-Cute..." Arturia and her counterparts thought.

"Wah...who would have thought that Emiya-kun had a side like this..." Ishtar and her counterparts thought.

"Senpai in this form...I want to take him and get him to wear some kids' clothes!" Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters thought.

"Onii-chan just called me onee-chan!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu thought happily.

"So this is what Sherou looked like as a child...kyaaa! I want to take him away from that useless goddess and keep him forever like this!" Astraea thought.

"Waaah! Shirou looks so adorable! Especially with the pouty face he's making right now!" Irisviel and Jaguar-man thought.

"W-Wow. I have never seen something like this happen before..." Ritsuka and Mashu thought.

"Jeez. This is getting way out of hand. Hope this doesn't escalate even further..." Kiritsugu. EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter thought.

However, fate had other plans...

Because it was then that Ruler Arturia then came up to Shirou.

"Arturia?"

"Shirou. Hope do you don't mind me doing this..." Ruler Arturia said as she took off her fake bunny ears. Shirou was confused with what Ruler Arturia just said. However, what happened next was that she placed them on Shirou's head.

And the result was pure chaos.

Because when Ruler Arturia saw the result of her actions, she felt like she was going to pass out from how cute Shirou looked with the fake bunny ears.

"S-SO CUTE!" she thought.

And then she passed out, shocking Shirou.

"Arturia?!" he said as he caught her. "Are you okay?!"

She didn't say anything.

"Everyone! I need some help here!"

However, when everyone saw Shirou with the fake bunny ears on his head, like Ruler Arturia, they all passed out too, except for Ritsuka, Mashu, Da Vinci, Kiritsugu, and the EMIYAs.

"D-Did we just see that?" Ritsuka said.

"Y-Yeah. It seems everyone has fallen heels over Shirou wearing those fake bunny ears senpai," Mashu said.

"Wow. Now that's a weapon of mass destruction if I've ever seen one before," Da Vinci said.

"Crap. I think we just jinxed it..." Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter thought.

"EVERYONE!" Shirou yelled in worry.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou sighed as he was walking in Chaldea's hallway. It was only a few minutes since he became a kid again, and yet it caused chaos with Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Iriviel, and Jaguar-man in which all of them were knocked out from seeing Shirou wearing fake bunny ears. "Well, at least we managed to get them to the nurse's office. Although why did nearly everyone passed out upon seeing me wearing the fake bunny ears from earlier?"

As he was walking, he ended up bumping into a few certain saber-faces.

"Hm? My Praetor!" Saber Nero said with excitement upon seeing Shirou. "But you look different today...did something bad happen to you?"

Shirou sighed again. "Da Vinci accidentally threw a potion at me that turned me into a child."

"Eh? A potion a regains a servant's youth...that sounds interesting!" Caster Nero said.

"Umu! Regaining my youth should also regain my beauty! Even though I'm already beautiful!" Bride Nero said.

"Exactly! Look at our praetor for example! He got struck with Da Vinci's youth potion and he's even more beautiful and cuter too!" Saber Nero said as she lifted him up.

"Wah! N-Nero!"

"So, this is what my Praetor looks like when he was a child...amazing!" Caster Nero said.

"Umu! All he needs right now is clothing that suits his cuteness!" Bride Nero said with smile on her face.

"Good idea!" Saber Nero said as she put Shirou down. "Praetor! Wait for us! We'll be bringing you some clothes that will suit you! We'll drop them off at your room!"

And Nero and her counterparts soon left, leaving Shirou alone.

"W-What just happened now..."

Despite being confused, Shirou continued walking towards his room to get some rest. However, as his E-rank luck would have it, someone else noticed him.

"Shirou?"

"Shirou-san?"

Shirou looked to see Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts looking at him with wonder in their eyes.

"Jeanne D'Arc?"

"Shirou. Uhm...what happened to you...?" Jeanne D'Arc asked.

"This question again huh? Well, to make a long story short, Da Vinci made me young again with a potion she created on accident."

"I-I see..." Jeanne D'Arc said.

"Wow...you turned so small Shirou-san..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Hahahaha! You look ridiculous right now!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter said with laughter. "You look so small it's hilarious to look right at you right now!"

"Older me! Don't make fun of him! He looks cute in my opinion!"

"Yeah little sister! He looks adorable right now!" Jeanne D'Arc said.

Shirou sighed. "Anyways, I need to go to my room now, so can I go now?"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily smiled. "Sure! You can go now!"

"Okay. Bye everyone!"

"Bye Shirou!" Jeanne D'Arc said.

"Bye Shirou-san!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Tch...bye Shirou..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

Shirou then left Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts.

"So that's Shirou-san when he was young..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Yeah..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

"Hmmmmm..." Jeanne D'Arc muttered.

"What is it proper older me?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily asked.

"Well...I suddenly feel like wanting a little brother now...and it feels like Shirou could fulfill that position..."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter suddenly turned to Jeanne and yelled, "Don't do it!"

Meanwhile, Shirou heard the yelling from Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts and wondering to himself, "What's with the yelling?"

However, before he could think any further, two more servants noticed him.

"Shirou-san?"

"Hm? Okita and Okita Alter?"

"Shirou-san. Is that you?" Okita asked.

"Yeah," Shirou replied.

"How did you end up so small?"

"Well...blame Da Vinci for that."

"I-I see..."

"Shirou, you are so small..." Okita Alter said as she continued to look a Shirou's new child-like body.

Shirou sighed. "Is me turning into a kid really that surprising?"

"Well...yes. To be fair, we never had this problem before," Okita replied.

"Figures..."

"Hm...do you want this?" Okita Alter asked as she pulled out some oden on a stick.

"Hm? Oden on a stick?"

"Yes."

"Uh...alter me, where did you get that?"

"From my pocket. Don't worry, it's safe to eat."

"O-Okay. Thanks," Shirou said as he grabbed the oden on a stick from Okita Alter's hand. He then took a bite of the oden.

"Well. How is it?" Okita Alter asked.

"It's good."

Okita Alter smiled. "Good," she said as she kneeled and rubbed Shirou's head. "So soft...and cute too..."

"Alter me? We need to go now." Okita said, snapping Okita Alter from her thoughts.

"Eh...can I do this a bit longer...?" Okita Alter said with a pout.

"No. We need to go now."

"Fine..." Okita Alter said with a sigh as she got up. "Bye Shirou. Hope to see you later."

"Bye Okita Alter. Bye Okita," Shirou replied.

And the two parted ways.

"Hey unaltered me."

"Hm? What is it?"

"The way Shirou is now...is way cuter. Don't you think so?"

Okita blushed at the question her alter counterpart said. "W-What are you saying?!" "A-Although, she does have a point, Shirou-san as a kid does look cute..." she thought.

Meanwhile, Shirou sighed as he continued walking. "Well this was something I did not expect. First was Nero and her counterparts, then Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, and Okita and her counterpart. Who's next, Musashi?" he thought.

As if his thoughts betrayed him, Musashi appeared in front of him as she walked by.

"Eh?! Shirou-kun?! Is that you?!" Musashi said, surprised by Shirou's change in body.

"Just...my...luck..." he thought as he mentally sighed. "Yes Musashi, it's me. And before you want ask questions, it's because of Da Vinci that I'm like this."

"Da Vinci? That genius?"

"Yes."

"And she's the reason why you're like this?"

"Yes."

"I see..." she muttered as she looked at Shirou around carefully. "Oh my god, this is what Shirou-kun looked like when he was a kid?! He's so adorable that I want to hug him right now!"

"Uh Musashi...are you okay?"

"Hm? Yeah, why?"

"Well...you're drooling a bit..."

Musashi then wiped her mouth to see if what Shirou said was true. As she did, she noticed that there was drool coming from her mouth. Realizing this, she immediately blushed.

"Uh...Musashi...are sure you okay?" Shirou asked.

"Ah...eh...y-yeah! J-Just let me to the washroom for a moment!" she said as she quickly left before heading towards the bathroom.

Shirou was confused as he watched her run away quickly. "What was going on with her?"

However, it was then that Shirou heard a bunch of collective voices calling out to him.

"Queen Shirou!"

"Mother!"

"Fou!"

Shirou turned around to see Fou coming at him along with the Knights of the Round and Merlin coming behind him. As Fou came in front of him, Shirou picked Fou up and Fou then moved onto his head.

"Queen Shirou! Are you all right?!" Gawain asked.

"Y-Yeah. Let me guess, you're all here because you heard about what happened to Arturia and her counterparts?"

"Yes! When we all heard about them fainting, we immediately rushed to where they were. When we got there, Nightingale told us what happened, along with what happened to you," Lancelot said.

"I see. But how did you find me?"

"Well...for some reason, it was Fou that found you," Tristan said.

"Yeah. As soon as we asked Fou to find you, Fou immediately sprinted out of the nurse's office and went to find you so easily," Bedivere said.

"Yeah. Although I don't know how Fou managed to find you so easily..." Gareth said.

"Me neither. Well, at least we managed to find you mother," Mordred said.

"I see. How are Arturia and her counterparts?"

"They're doing fine at the moment. They're probably awake right now," Merlin said.

"I see. Well that's good news at least," Shirou said. While Shirou said that, Fou then started to play with Shirou's head, making him laugh a bit. "Hey Fou, what are you up to?"

"Fou!" Fou said happily as he continued to play with Shirou's head.

Shirou then continued to play with Fou while the Knights of the Round and Merlin watched it with wonder in their eyes.

"W-Wow. I have never seen our queen before like this..." Gawain said.

"Yeah. And I have never seen Fou like this..." Lancelot said.

"This isn't fair...how is it that little beast always kicks me every time in the face while he plays with Shirou and Mashu like this?" Merlin muttered.

"Heh. It's probably Karma from all the times you kept messing with us Merlin," Mordred said with a chuckle.

"That is true," Tristan said.

"Totally," Gareth said.

"Sorry Merlin, but even I agree with them," Bedivere said.

Merlin sighed. "You guys are mean..."

Shirou nervously chuckled at the conversation the Knights of the Round were having with Merlin. "Well then, I don't want to keep all of you busy, so I'll be taking my leave now."

"As you wish my queen," Gawain said.

"Good. Bye everyone. Keep up the good work!"

"Y-Yes!" the Knights of the Round exclaimed.

And the two groups departed. Eventually, he arrived at his room. "Well, I've finally arrived at my room. Hopefully nothing bad will happen..."

However, his thoughts were interrupted by a certain someone who was creeping up behind.

"Oh my."

Shriou turned around to see a servant who was staring at him with fish eyes. That servant happened to be Caster Giles.

"W-Who are you?"

"Hm? Oh, excuse my interruptions. My name is Gilles De Rias. And I would like you to come with me," he said in a creepy tone.

Even by looking at him, Shirou already knew this servant was one he should not go with. As Caster Gilles was creeping up on him even closer, Shirou moved backwards until the point where his back was at the wall.

_"This guy is bad news..."_

"Well? What are you waiting for?" he said creepily while reaching towards him.

However, before he could even touch him, an armored hand was on Caster Gilles's shoulder. Gilles turned around to see Saber Arturia behind him.

And she did not look happy.

"A-Arturia?" Shirou said.

In an instant, Saber Arturia punched Caster Gilles and he was sent flying across the hallway. As Caster Gilles landed onto the ground, Arturia yelled out one thing.

"STAY AWAY FROM SHIROU!"

Shirou was surprised by Arturia's outburst. "A-Arturia?"

Arturia then came up to Shirou and grabbed his hand. "Shirou, come with me," she said as she grabbed him to his room. She then locked the door, let go of Shirou's hand, and sat on one of the chairs in his room while Shirou sat on the bed.

"Shirou, are you okay? Did he do anything to you?" Saber Arturia asked worryingly.

"No. Why?"

Saber Arturia let out a sigh of relief. "That's good." She then went over to Shirou and placed both of her hands onto Shirou's shoulders. "Listen Shirou, by any circumstances, do not ever meet that servant."

"You mean the caster version of Gilles?"

"Yes. Me and my counterparts do not want you to meet him ever again."

"You can say that again, he creeps me out."

"Yes, and let's just say...he did some unforgivable things in the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War."

Not wanting to know what things Caster Gilles did and hearing the tone Arturia had while taking about him, Shirou quickly complied to Saber Arturia's request. "You don't have to say any more. I don't need to know."

Arturia let out a sigh of relief. "Good. So you won't meet him again?"

"Yes."

"Good. But to be on the safe side...you'll be under watch from me and my counterparts for a while."

Shirou was shocked upon hearing this. "Ehhhhhh?!"

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It has been a few days since Shirou was turned into a kid, and the effects were driving him crazy. First, since he was turned into a child, he discovered that his parameters were cut by half, which meant that he was not allowed to go on missions under orders from everyone that knew him dearly. Second, since he was turned into a kid, he wasn't allowed to go into the kitchen because of how short he was.

And third was the amount of protection he was receiving from Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Iriviel, Jaguar-man, the Knights of the round, and surprisingly, Kiritsugu, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi.

Right now, Shirou was in Da Vinci's workshop waiting for Da Vinci to be done making the cure of his problem.

"So? How is it Da Vinci?"

"Just give me a moment Shirou! It'll be done within a few minutes."

"I see. Keep up the good work Da Vinci."

"You don't have to tell me! By the way, how's life as a kid treating you?"

Shirou sighed. "It's been crazy ever since then. I had to take a break from cooking because my size wouldn't allow me to reach the stoves, Arturia and her counterparts, Tohsaka and her counterparts, Sakura and her counterparts, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Luvia, mom, Fuji-nee, my old man, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne and her counterparts, Okita and her counterpart, Musashi, and the Knights of the Round were overprotective of me, and I've been receiving a lot of attention from the people that knew me.

"Really? How did it go?" Da Vinci asked with a grin on her face.

"Well, Cu and his counterparts laughed at the fact that I turned into a kid, Medusa and her counterparts had varied reactions. Medusa just looked at me curiously, Ana gave me a cookie, and Gorgon didn't say anything. Medea didn't say anything, Sasaki was chuckling over how I turned into a kid, Hercules just yelled at me, and Archer Gilgamesh...well, he was taunting and laughing at me, and it did not end well for him."

"Really? What happened?"

Shirou sighed again. "Arturia and her counterparts unleashed all of their noble phantasms on him upon hearing that he made fun of me. Things got even crazier when everyone else heard about it and went did the same on him."

Da Vinci was laughing when she heard this. "Wow. Can't believe that happened."

"Yeah. In fact, when Caster Gilgamesh and Kid Gilgamesh saw the whole thing, you want to know what they described it as?"

"What?"

"A scene of bloodshed. That's what they called it."

"Wow. Guess that'll teach that arrogant king a lesson then," Da Vinci said with laughter. "Speaking of which, how were the others?"

"Well, Scathach and her counterpart didn't mind as long as I can fight and Jack and her friends, Amakusa, Arthur, Diarmuid, Alexander, and Waver were surprised seeing me like this."

"I see...you have it rough, don't you?"

"You don't have to tell me..." Shirou moaned.

Da Vinci giggled. "Anyways, I'm done! Here's the potion!" she said as she handed Shirou the completed potion. As Shirou grabbed the potion, he took the cap off and drank the potion. For the first seconds, nothing happened to him. Then suddenly, he felt an aura around him and in an instant, he reverted to his normal self.

"Phew. I'm back in my old body again," Shirou said with a sigh of relief.

"Yeah. Are there any problems?"

"Hm...I don't think there are any. Anyways, thanks for the help Da Vinci!"

"No problem Shirou! Just call me if there are any side effect!"

"Okay! I'll be leaving now!" Shirou said as he began to leave Da Vinci's workshop. "Bye Da Vinci!"

"Bye Shirou!"

And Shirou left, leaving Da Vinci in her workshop.

_"Well...that was interesting...wonder what I should make next...?"_

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Omake

"Everyone! Thank you for watching Shirou over when he was turned into a kid!"

"It was nothing Irisviel," Arturia and her counterparts said.

"Yeah. Watching Emiya-kun was easy," Ishtar and her counterparts said.

"And it was quite a fun experience for all of us," Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters said.

"Although we are going to miss onii-chan calling us onee-chan..." Illya and her counterparts said along with Miyu.

"And seeing him as a child..." Astraea and Jaguar-man said.

"Umu! Seeing our praetor as a child was quite an adventure!"

"Yeah! Who would have even known that Shirou-san was this adorable!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"I know right?!" Jeanne D'Arc said.

"Well...I'll admit, he was cute..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter muttered.

"Watching over Shirou-san was quite peaceful," Okita and her alter said.

"Yeah! And he was adorable too!" Musashi said.

"Lady Irisviel, watching Shirou was quite interesting. Especially when he plays with Fou," the Knights of the Round said.

"Yeah. And I'm jealous with how Fou acts differently when he's with Shirou..." Merlin muttered.

Irisviel smiled. "I would like to do something to return the favor though...let me see..." she said as she checked her dress for something.

"No, it's really fine," Arturia and her counterparts said.

"That's right, there's no need to-" Ishtar and her counterparts said but was cut off.

"I only happened to have these pictures of Shirou with me," she said as she held up pictures of child Shirou.

At that moment, everyone was in shock with what Irisviel just revealed.

"Would all of you like them?" she asked with a smile on her face.


	38. Bedivere's Training

Shirou was at Chaldea's training room, practicing his archery. As he projected a sword, he then propped it onto the bow and pulled the string. He then released the string along with the projected sword, letting it fly through the air and landing it in the middle of the target.

As the projected sword hit the target in the middle, Shirou let out a tiny sigh. "Well, guess my archery skills hasn't dulled a bit..." he thought.

Shirou then projected another sword and used it as a makeshift arrow. He then shot the projected sword in the middle of the target. As he did, everyone that was in the training room at the time watched Shirou in marvel at what he just did.

"Did you see what he just did?" one servant said.

"Yeah. He projected a sword and used it like if it was an arrow and shot at it with perfect accuracy," another servant said.

"Yeah. It's like if he's another version of the red bowman here."

"Well to be fair, there are rumors that he and the red bowman along with his alter are actually the same person."

"Ehhhh?! Really?!"

"Yeah."

Shirou heard the chatter and sighed. "Guess everywhere I go; I won't have any privacy to myself huh...?" he thought. To ease his mind, Shirou then projected another sword and continued practicing his archery.

After a few more shots with his bow, Shirou was satisfied with his progress. "Well, that should be enough shots for today..."

It was then that a certain servant went into the training room and called Shirou out. "Queen Shirou?"

"That voice...Bedivere?" Shirou thought as he turned around to see Bedivere coming towards him.

Bedivere let out a sigh of relief as he found the person he was looking for. As he came over to Shirou, he let out a few sighs of breath to compose himself. "I'm glad I found you Queen Shirou."

Shirou sighed. "I'm going to be stuck with that title forever huh?" Shirou thought as he remembered the many times the Knights of the Round kept calling him by that despite him asking them not to call him that. "Why are you here Bedivere?"

"Well...I have a request to ask of you Queen Shirou," Bedivere replied.

"Okay. What is it?"

"Well...can you please teach me in the ways of swordsmanship?"

Shirou was surprised by Bedivere's sudden request. "Eh?"

Bedivere was silent for a moment before saying, "Are you okay Queen Shirou?"

"Y-Yeah. I-I'm just surprised from your request. Anyways, why are you asking me this?"

"Well...after seeing your duel against the King of Heroes, I was appalled with the swordsmanship you showed all of us during the fight. When I saw your fighting style along with your weapons and noble phantasm overwhelming the King of Heroes, I felt a sudden urge to improve upon myself."

"I see. So that's why you asked me that request earlier."

"Yes. Anyways, can you accept my request?"

Shirou thought about Bedivere's request and said, "Well, I guess a training session wouldn't hurt, so yes. Follow me to the training arena."

Bedivere's face brighten upon hearing Shirou's answer. "Yes!"

Shirou then went up to the training arena with Bedivere following him. "Wow. I can't believe that I'm actually teaching a Knight of the Round swordsmanship. Well, to be fair, my fight against Gilgamesh did receive a lot of attention from practically everyone in Chaldea, so I'm not surprised if something like this was about to happen eventually. Although I didn't expect it to happen right now of all days..." he thought as he climbed up to the training arena. He then went to one side of the arena while Bedivere went to the other.

Shirou then drew his katana while Bedivere did the same. "Are you ready Bedivere?"

"Yes!"

"Well then...here I go!"

Shirou then lunged at Bedivere with his Katana at hand, preparing to swing at him. However, Bedivere dodged his swing and thrusted his sword at him, in which Shirou dodged as well. Shirou then swung his katana at Bedivere again, but this time, Bedivere blocked the strike with his sword. However, he was a little bit late on the defense and Shirou pushed him back with the sword strike, making him move backwards a bit.

Not missing his chance, Shirou went for him with his katana in his hand. As he did, he swung overhead, forcing Bedivere to block his strike. Wanting to earn some distance between him and Shirou, Bedivere then pushed Shirou backwards with his sword with force, making him move to the other side of the arena for a bit.

As Shirou was moved to the other side of the arena, he was surprised with how well Bedivere is doing. "Wow, so this is how one of the Knights of the Round fights. Not only that, but he's Bedivere, one of the Knights of the Round that stayed by Arturia's side until the fall of Camelot. And some people say he's the weakest...heh, say that when you fight against him. He's not as weak as people say he is. Although the legends say he was supposed to have one arm, but I see another arm there," Shirou thought as he recovered himself.

"So, this is the swordsmanship of my queen...it's as strong as I expected, especially since after that duel he had against with the King of Heroes. And he's even not using those twin swords of his. Also, his swordsmanship reminds me of my king's swordsmanship. By any chance, did she train him to become the man he is in front of me?" Bedivere thought as he recovered himself.

As the two stood up after recovering themselves, Bedivere then said something to Shirou.

"Wow...so this is your strength..." Bedivere said.

"Hey. You're doing well too Bedivere..." Shirou replied.

Bedivere smiled. "Thank you for the praise Queen Shirou..."

Shirou smiled. "No problem. Now then, shall we end this...?"

"Agreed."

The two then positioned themselves into a stance, readying themselves for one final strike. For a moment, there was silence between the two.

Then they lunged at each other, each of them swung at each other with one sword strike. As their blades hit, they ended up on the opposite sides of the arena. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then Bedivere suddenly kneeled over.

"Guh...guess I lost Queen Shirou..." he said.

Shirou then sheathed his katana and went over to Bedivere, lending him a hand. "Need some help?" he asked.

Bedivere then grabbed his hand and Shirou pulled him up. "Well, how did I do?" he asked.

"Well...you didn't do too bad."

"I see. Any suggestions that you can offer?"

"Well...there is one thing I should suggest."

Bedivere listened attentively.

"You swing a bit too wide. When you swing like that, you leave yourself open for enemy attacks."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Let me show you something," Shirou said as he projected a sword like the one Bedivere was holding. "When using a thin blade like that, you don't fully swing it. You actually want to trust it forward with a half-swing like this," he said as he did what he said earlier.

"Really? Like this?" Bedivere asked as he copied the movements Shirou was doing.

"Yes. But with less movement and energy."

"Okay then." Bedivere then did the same thing he did before, but with less movement and energy. "Like this?"

"Yes, just like that."

And the two continued what they were doing...

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Within a few days, Shirou and Bedivere were in the process of improving Bedivere's swordsmanship. During those few days, Shirou saw a few flaws in Bedivere's swordsmanship and posture and helped him improve in those areas. Afterwards, Shirou and Bedivere did a few practice matches with Bedivere using the advice Shirou gave him.

"Hah!" Bedivere huffed as he swung using the advice Shirou gave him.

"That's good Bedivere, keep it up," Shirou said as he blocked his sword strike with ease.

Bedivere then continued half-swinging his sword with ease and was forcing Shirou back bit by bit. As the training match continued, both servants were at a deadlock with each other.

At that moment, Shirou thought today's training was enough and then pushed Bedivere back by a bit. As Bedivere recovered, Shirou then sheathed his katana back into its scabbard.

"I think we're done with today's training Bedivere. Let's take a break for now," he said.

"As you wish Queen Shirou," Bedivere replied as he sheathed his sword.

Shirou let out a sigh as he reviewed today's progress. "You seem to doing better than before Bedivere," he said with a smile.

"You think so?"

"Yeah," Shirou said as he sat down on a nearby bench. Bedivere then did the same as well. It was then that Shirou pulled out a water bottle. "Want some?"

"Yes please," Bedivere replied. Shirou then handed the water bottle to Bedivere in which Bedivere gladly accepted it. As he did, he uncapped the water bottle and started drinking from it. Eventually, Bedivere stopped drinking it.

It was then that Shirou asked Bedivere a question.

"Hey Bedivere, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it Queen Shirou?"

"Well...this has been on my mind for a while...but what's with that silver arm of yours? And just for the record, I'm not creeped out by it, I just want to know. After all, the history books said that Bedivere was missing one arm during a fight in his lifetime."

Bedivere let out a sigh. "That huh? Well, this arm...is a prosthetic arm made from Excalibur."

Shirou spat out the water he was drinking from his water bottle.

"Queen Shirou?!"

"I-It's nothing Bedivere, I'm just...surprised with...what you just said..." he said while coughing at the same time. After a few seconds, Shirou composed himself. "Please continue."

"Y-Yeah. Anyways, this arm is Excalibur remodeled into this prosthetic arm by Merlin. It is also my noble phantasm, Switch On - Airgetlám. What it does is that it increases my parameters to the point where I'm able to fight the other Knights of the Round."

"Is that so. But how did that happen? And why?"

"Well...let's just say...this was the result of me breaking a promise to my king..."

Realizing that he was about to enter into a sensitive subject, Shirou felt like the answers need to stop there. "You don't have to say any more, I think I know what you are getting at."

Bedivere let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you."

"No problem. So, how does your noble phantasm work?"

"Well, it's like this. I focus energy into my arm, then I turn it into what Ritsuka may call, "a beam sword," and then swing my arm at the opponent with said, "beam sword.""

"I see. Turning your arm into a weapon...that sounds interesting..."

"Yeah..."

For a while, silence came between Shirou and Bedivere as both of them were trying to figure out how to continue the conversation they were having earlier.

Then Bedivere broke the silence.

"Queen Shirou, I am grateful that you came into my king's and her counterparts' life."

Shirou was surprised with what Bedivere just said. "W-What? What do you mean by that?"

"It's simple, before you ever arrived here, my king and her counterparts seemed to never truly smiled. Even if they did, it was a forced smile. However, when you came here, me and the Knights of the Round were happy that our king and her counterparts were showing her hidden emotions. Furthermore, after hearing the story of how you met our king and helped her, we were all happy because of it. And for that, I thank you."

Shirou blushed from the confession Bedivere said. "Y-You don't have to thank me."

"Nonsense! As our King's queen, you deserve this!"

"Well if that's the case then...then I accept your words Bedivere."

Bedivere smiled. "Your welcome my queen."

Shirou smiled back. "Want to continue practicing?"

"Yes!"

And the two went back to their usual training.

_(The next day...)_

Shirou was walking in the hallway of Chaldea, minding his own business.

It was then that he heard a few certain voices coming up behind him yelling, "Queen Shirou/mother!" Shirou turned around to see Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Mordred, and Gareth coming up towards him.

"W-What is it?" he asked to the Knights of the Round.

The Knights of the Round took a deep breath before yelling, "PLEASE TRAIN US IN YOUR WAYS OF SWORDSMANSHIP LIKE WHAT YOU DID WITH BEDIVERE!"

Shirou mentally sighed. "Why?"

"Earlier, we had a practice match against him and he won against all of us! When we asked him what he did, he said that you taught him to improve himself! So we ask you, please help us improve as well!"

Shirou sighed, knowing that there was no way to get out of this situation. "Follow me..." he said.

This was going to be one long day for Shirou...


	39. Summer Shenanigans

"Wah! The beach! It's been a while since we went here senpai!" Mashu yelled happily and excitedly while looking at the beach in front of her.

"I know Mashu. When was the last time we went to the beach?" Ritsuka asked.

"I don't know. Maybe last year before Shirou-san arrived here?"

"Maybe. Anyways, wonder what's Shirou up to?"

"He's unloading the beach supplies along with the other servants. Speaking of which, there he is."

And it was then that Shirou appeared with a bunch of beach supplies.

Right now, it was the season of summer and Ritsuka and Mashu were on vacation after a few days of hard work finishing missions and maintaining Chaldea under the orders of Da Vinci. As Ritsuka and Mashu were coming over to where Shirou was, they saw him unloading some beach supplies.

"Shirou!"

"Hm? Oh, master, enjoying the view?" Shirou asked.

"Yes. Need some help carrying those supplies?" Ritsuka replied.

"No. I can handle this."

"Are you sure Shirou-san?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. Anyways, are we okay doing this? I mean, taking a vacation right now of all times," Shirou worryingly asked as he placed some beach supplies down.

"Relax. Chaldea gave me a one week all-expenses paid trip to here, so there's no need to worry about that. In case if you were wondering, this isn't the first time I went on a vacation here. Plus, if even anything goes wrong at Chaldea, I've got teleport spells to transfer us back there instantly."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. I've done this multiple times, so there's no worry."

"Spending time on the vacation or using the transporting spells?"

"The former."

"I see. Well in that case, I hope you enjoy your vacation master. You too Mashu," Shirou said with a smile on his face.

"Yeah! You too Shirou-san!" Mashu said.

Soon, Ritsuka and Mashu left for the beach, leaving Shirou alone with the beach supplies as he set them up. "Seven days huh...hopefully, nothing disastrous will happen within these seven days..." he thought.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was at the beach, looking at the waves as the sound of water splashing towards the sand calmed his mind. "The beach...huh? It's been a while since I've been there...speaking of which, I don't even remember the last time I've been here..." he thought.

"Shirou!" a voice called out. Shirou turned around to see where the voice came from. As he did, it was Arturia who was coming over to him with a beach volleyball in her hands.

"Arturia?"

"Shirou, what are you doing?"

"Hm? Just looking at the waves. Why?"

"Oh nothing. I just wanted to know. Anyways, do you want to play beach volleyball with me and my counterparts?"

Shirou thought about Arturia's request and said, "Yes."

Arturia's face brightened upon hearing Shirou saying yes. "Great! Follow me then!"

Shirou soon got off from the beach cloth he was sitting on and followed Arturia to where her counterparts were. As they arrived, they were all waiting at a beach volleyball setup they made earlier.

"You're finally here, Shirou," Arturia Alter said.

"Where were you?" Arturia Lily asked.

"Yeah. You shouldn't keep your king waiting Shirou," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Yeah," Lancer Arturia said.

"Well, either way, Shirou is here and that's all that matters," Ruler Arturia said.

"I suppose so..." Archer Arturia said.

"Yeah," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"You're right about that," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Anyways, Shirou is here so we can start playing now!" Mysterious Heroine X said excitedly.

"Yeah. I can't wait to play beach volleyball with Shirou," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Me too!" Mysterious Heroine XX exclaimed cheerfully.

Shirou looked at the set up and asked Arturia, "Did all of you set this up?"

"Yes," they replied.

"I see. So, who are the teams then?"

"Well...here's the thing. We're still undecided yet," Arturia said.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Is that so...then how about this?" Shirou then projected a bowl along with 13 strips of paper. Six of them have blue on the end while the other six had red on the end. "We'll draw ballots and whoever gets a ballot will be either be placed on red team or blue team. How does that work?"

Arturia and her counterparts nodded in agreement.

"Good. Alright, now we need to pull the ballots then," Shirou said as he put the ballots into the bowl.

Shirou, Arturia, and her counterparts then drew the ballots from the bowl. As they all did, the teams were decided. On the red team was Shirou, Arturia, Arturia Alter, Arturia Lily, Lancer Arturia, and Mysterious Heroine XX. On the blue team was Lancer Arturia Alter, Archer Arturia, Rider Arturia Alter, Santa Arturia Alter, Ruler Arturia, Mysterious Heroine X, and Mysterious Heroine X Alter.

"All right, is everyone ready?" Arturia said as she had the ball in his hand.

"Yes!" they replied.

"Hold on. Give me a moment," Shirou said. Shirou then took off the jacket he was wearing, revealing his toned body and defined abs.

It was then that Arturia and her counterparts blushed upon seeing his abs.

"Hm? Is there something wrong?" Shirou asked.

"I-It's nothing..." Arturia and her counterparts said.

Shirou shrugged. "Okay. Let the game begin."

"All right...here I go!" Shirou said as he served the ball towards the other side.

As the ball flew to the other side of the court, Archer Arturia served it back, heading towards to where Lancer Arturia was. Lancer Arturia then served it back to the other side, but Lancer Arturia Alter blocked her shot, shooting it towards to an empty space.

At that moment, the blue team was up by one point.

"Tch!" Arturia Alter said as she picked up the ball and handed it towards Mysterious Heroine X, who was serving.

Mysterious Heroine X then served the ball to Shirou, who blocked it and hit it up high. It was then that Lancer Arturia spiked the ball with a hint of mana in the spike really hard and it headed towards right next to where Archer Arturia was.

"Hey!" Archer Arturia said. "Are we even allowed to do that?!"

Lancer Arturia smirked as it was time for the red team's counterattack. "Hey. All's fair in love and war."

"Why you...!" Mysterious Heroine X muttered.

"Well if that's the case, then we should do the same then," Ruler Arturia said.

"I agree. Let's fight back then," Santa Arturia Alter said.

Soon, the red team and blue team were serving and hitting the ball at each other, each of them not budging and each team scored a point whenever they can. As time when on, the competition was getting intense to the point where the ball just looked like a blur passing through both sides.

Eventually, both teams were tied with 14 points each.

"W-Wow, this isn't any beach volleyball match like I've ever seen before..." Shirou thought.

"Shirou!" Arturia yelled, snapping him out of his thoughts as he noticed that the ball was coming towards him. Shirou then blocked the ball and hit it upwards. It was then that Arturia decided to spike the ball into the ground. However, it was then that Rider Arturia Alter hit the ball upwards, in which Santa Arturia Alter decided to jump and spiked it towards where Arturia was about to receive it.

However, as she was about to receive it, she ended up bumping into Shirou and both of them ended up falling backwards onto each other.

"Wah! Shirou! Look out!"

"Hm?"

At that moment, everyone in the game went over to the area where they fell to check on them. As they did, they received a certain surprise.

"Ow...are you okay Shirou?" Arturia asked.

"Yeah. I think I'll be fine..." Shirou replied.

"Well that's fine...although Shirou..."

"Hm? What is it?"

"Well...do you mind letting me go for a moment?"

As Arturia said that, Shirou then realized at the position he was in with Arturia. He was on top of her and his hands were grabbing hers. Shirou quickly let go of her hands. "Oh. Sorry."

"N-No problem..." Arturia muttered.

At that moment, Arturia's counterparts were jealous of Arturia.

And they all had one thought in mind.

_"Lucky. Wish that was me over there..."_

In the end, there was only one winner and it wasn't any of the teams.

It was Saber Arturia herself.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Emiya-kun, how long until it's fixed?" Ishtar asked.

"Just give me a moment Ishtar," Shirou replied as he was fixing the flashlight he was carrying.

"Well please hurry! I want to find those gems right now!" Rider Ishtar yelled out excitedly.

Right now, Shirou, Ishtar, her rider self, and Ereshkigal were in a cave on a nearby island searching for a supposed treasure that came from rumors from the residents of the island they were currently on. While Shirou wasn't interested in the treasure the rumors had to off, Ishtar and her rider self was interested.

Why? Simple, the treasure was said to be a mountain of jewels, which happened to be Ishtar's, or rather, Rin's favorite thing in the entire world. Rumor or not, an opportunity for a mountain of free gems was something she was not going to waste.

And how was Shirou and Ereshkigal was involved?

Simple, the mountain of jewels was said to be hidden deep within the cave and they need a source of light. However, both Ishtars were running low on jewels. And they needed someone who they can know and trust to have some light.

Thus, brings forth the situation Shirou was in right now.

And Ereshkigal was here just to make sure the Ishtars don't cause any trouble.

"Sorry Emiya-kun, it looks like Ishtar and her counterpart seems to be eager finding that mountain of jewels," Ereshkigal said with a smile on her face.

"I can see that..." Shirou said as he was finished fixing the flashlight he borrowed earlier. Right now, they were deep into the cave as Shirou shined the flashlight on the path they were going. "Okay, seems to be fixed."

"Great! Now let's get going! Moutain of jewels, here I come!" Archer Ishtar said excitedly.

"Hey! Don't you mean, our mountain of jewels?!" Rider Ishtar asked.

Shirou sighed as he looked at both Ishtars arguing at each other. "It's like the old saying, "The greatest enemy is yourself," come to life..." he thought.

"Emiya-kun?" Ereshkigal said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing."

Eventually, Shirou, Ishtar and her counterpart, and Ereshkigal continued walk deeper into the cave. As they did, they ended up seeing a fork in the road as the path was now split into two.

"Hm? Which path should we take Emiya-kun?" Archer Ishtar asked.

"Hm...let's go left then."

Shirou, Ishtar and her counterpart, and Ereshkigal then took the left path. However, as soon as they went left, the passage behind them was closed.

"What the heck?!" Archer Ishtar yelled.

"What's going on?! Why did the passageway close behind us?!" Rider Ishtar yelled.

"U-Um Emiya-kun?! Any idea what's going on here right now?!" Ereshkigal asked nervously.

"Honestly, I'm not sure," Shirou replied as he stepped forward. However, it was then that the ground beneath him cracked. "What the-?!" Soon the floor below him broke, revealing a giant hole and he fell. "Wah!"

Noticing this, Archer Ishtar quickly dropped into the hole and caught Shirou while floating in the air.

"Emiya-kun, are you okay?!"

"Y-Yeah. Thanks for saving me Ishtar. I would have been a goner if it wasn't of you," Shirou replied.

Ishtar blushed upon hearing Shirou's complement. "Y-You idiot! D-Don't get the wrong idea! I'm just making sure you don't die on me!" she said as she was carrying him back up from the hole. "A-Anyways, let's find the mountain of jewels!" She then dropped him as they managed to get back to the other side of the path.

"Is Emiya-kun okay?" Rider Ishtar and Ereshkigal asked.

"Yeah. He's going to be fine."

Both servants let out a sigh of relief. It was then that Rider Ishtar and Ereshkigal then started floating to where Archer Ishtar and Shirou were. "Well then, shall we continue?" Rider Ishtar asked.

"Obviously!" Archer Ishtar said.

Soon, Shirou and the group continued walking. As they continued walking, they eventually came across another fork in the road.

"Another fork in the road? This seems suspicious for some reason..."

"Hm...let's go right this time," Ishtar said.

Shirou, Rider Ishtar, and Ereshkigal followed Archer Ishtar's orders and went right, hoping nothing bad would happen. However, as if Shirou's E-Rank luck would have it, the passageway behind them closed like before.

"Aw come on! Not again!" Archer Ishtar yelled.

"Great. What's going to happen next?" Rider Ishtar asked.

"Oh boy. This can't be good..." Ereshkigal muttered.

"I've got a bad feeling about this..." Shirou said.

It was then that a sound was heard in the distance. As they turned to see what the source of the sound was, it was then that a giant boulder suddenly appeared in front of them and was rolling towards them.

"What the heck?! Where did that come from?!" Ishtar and her counterparts yelled.

Shirou then traced his bow and a simple sword and shot the boulder, blowing it up into tiny pieces. "Everyone all right?" Shirou asked.

"Y-Yeah..." Ishtar and her counterparts said.

Shirou let out a sigh of relief. "Shall we move on then?"

"Obviously!" Archer Ishtar and Rider Ishtar yelled out as they started to walk ahead of Shirou and Ereshkigal. Shirou and Ereshkigal then followed them. As they did, Shirou had one thought in mind. "Okay. This looks and feels way too familiar...like it's some sort of dungeon game or movie..."

Eventually, Shirou, Ishtar, and her counterparts reached to the end of the path where they were walking. As they did, what they saw shocked them, especially the Ishtars.

It was a room filled with a pile of jewels..

"YES! A MOUNTAIN OF JEWELS!" Archer Ishtar yelled in excitement.

"ALL RIGHT! LOOKS LIKE THE RUMORS WERE TRUE! ALTHOUGH WE DIDN'T EXPECT THE TRAPS, BUT WHO CARES!" Rider Ishtar yelled in excitement.

Soon, both Ishtars started ransacking the room, taking every jewel they can find. Shirou and Ereshkigal let out a sigh as they saw the scene in front of them.

"Well...guess that ended well huh?" Ereshkigal said.

"Yeah. Although we did not expect the traps in the cave and the forks in the road..." Shirou replied.

"That too. Well, at least nobody didn't get hurt. Imagine what would happen if we brought Astraea over..."

Shirou laughed nervously as he imagined what would happen if they brought Astraea over. "Yeah...they would probably fight each other..."

Eventually, both Ishtars were done gathering all the jewels in the room. "Okay we got all of the jewels here! Now we can leave the cave!" Archer Ishtar said.

"Yeah! I can't wait to see the look on Astraea's face when she sees that we found a bunch of jewels right now!" Rider Ishtar said.

However, it was at that moment that the ceiling above them started to crumble.

"What the?!"

"Oh no, the ceiling above us is about to crumble!"

"Eh?! What do we do?!"

Shirou quickly looked around the room for an exit. "Quick, let's go back using the path we came from!" he yelled and started to run.

Ishtar and her counterparts soon followed Shirou and went back on the path they were on. During the running, the entire cave itself started collapsing on itself. Shirou had to go through the sealed passageways they came from Eventually, they were close to the entrance where they came from.

"There's the exit!" Shirou yelled. Ishtar and her counterparts were relieved that the exit was close. However, as they arrived there was one problem that was in front of them.

The giant hole Shirou nearly fell into.

"Great, there's the giant hole I fell into. What should be do..." However, in an instant, Rider Ishtar suddenly grabbed Shirou arm. "Ishtar?!"

"Emiya-kun, hold on!" she said as she jumped over the hole while floating at the same time. As they did, they reached to the exit. "Are you all right?"

"Y-Yeah."

Rider Ishtar let out a sigh. "Everyone, hurry!"

Archer Ishtar and Ereshkigal then did the same as Rider Ishtar and flew over the hole as well. They all then arrived outside the entrance of the cave as the cave was filled in.

Overwhelmed with exhaustion, Shirou laid down on the ground.

"Is...everyone...okay...?" Shirou asked with huffs of breath.

"Y-Yeah..." Archer Ishtar and Rider Ishtar moaned.

"Y-Yes. Looks like we all survived..." Ereshkigal said.

Shirou let out a sigh of relief. "Well that's good..." he said before he passed out from the exhaustion.

Ishtar and her counterparts let out a sigh of relief as they proceed to look at his sleeping face with a smile on their faces. "Emiya-kun, you still haven't changed...although we need to find the sources and tell them there were traps later..."

In the end, Ishtar and her counterparts not only gained a mountain of jewels, but another unexpected treasure.

Shirou's sleeping face.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was swimming in the pool of the resort. As he did, he felt the water flowing through his body as he swam to the other side of the pool.

Eventually, wanting some air, Shirou got out of the water to catch some breath for oxygen. As he did, some servants came into the pool as well.

"Senpai?"

Shirou turned around to see Parvati, Kama, BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, and Kingprotea in swimsuits of various designs along with pool toys.

"Sakura? Kama? BB? Passionlip? Meltlilith? Kingprotea? What are all of you doing here?" Shirou asked.

"Oh, we're here for a swim senpai!" BB said.

"Yeah. It's been a while since we did some swimming, so came here," Passionlip said.

"Yeah. It would also be nice to get wet as well," Meltlilith said.

"And to get relieve some of this heat," Kingprotea said.

Surprising, Kama didn't say anything. Not only that, but her face looked like she was scared of something.

"Kama? Is everything all right? You don't look so good."

Kama immediately shook her head and replied, "I-It's nothing! I-I'm just not interested in this!"

Shirou was confused with Kama's overreaction to something as small as swimming. "Anyways, do all of you want to join in?"

"Yes!" Parvati and BB and her sisters said.

"No thanks. I think I'll pass," Kama said.

"Okay then."

Soon, Parvati and BB and her sisters soon joined Shirou into the pool. As they did, they started playing in the water. Shirou and Parvati started swimming together while BB started spraying water at her sisters with a water gun she brought over. BB was laughing at the stunt she pulled off...until Passionlip, Meltlilith, and Kingprotea fought back by splashing a bunch of water on her, making her mad.

"Why you!" BB yelled as she refilled her water gun. "Get back here!"

"Never!" Passionlip, Meltlilith, and Kingprotea replied as they moved away from BB.

Shirou and Parvati laughed at the sight in front of them as they took a break from swimming. As they did, they noticed Kama just looking at them.

"Is there something wrong with Kama today? She doesn't look so well."

"Her? Well...for some reason, when I told her that we were swimming today, she had a bad mood for the whole morning senpai."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

"I see...do you want me to talk to her? I could try to sort her problem out if I can."

Parvati let out a smile. "Yes senpai! Please do!"

Shirou then got out of the pool and went over to where Kama was sitting. As he arrived, Kama was sitting on a chair with a sour look on her face.

"Kama."

Kama didn't say anything.

"Kama."

Realizing that she can't ignore him anymore, Kama finally replied. "What?"

"Why do you look so grumpy right now?"

Kama scoffed. "It's none of your business."

Shirou sighed as he knew that Kama was a tough girl that rarely talks about her problems. "Okay then, let me ask you this. Do you want to swim with Parvati and the others?"

For a moment, there was silence in the air. Then Kama said, "No."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want to."

"And why?"

Kama sighed as she knew she can't avoid saying the truth anymore. Especially after seeing Shirou's face.

"It's because I don't know how to swim."

Shirou was surprised to hear this. "Really? And that's why you don't want to swim with everyone else?"

"Yeah..."

Shirou then thought about Kama's problem and said, "Well, do you want me to teach you how to swim?"

Kama immediately blushed. "W-What?! Teaching me how to swim?!"

"Yeah."

"And why would I do that?!"

"Well, you do want to swim with everyone else right? Otherwise, why would you look so frustrated while looking at everyone else?"

Kama mentally groaned as she knew he was right. Deep inside, she wanted to swim with the others, but couldn't because of her inability to swim.

"Well?"

"Fine. Teach me how to swim..." Kama grumbled.

Shirou smiled. "Follow me then."

Kama then got out from her seat and then followed Shirou to the pool. Shirou then went into the pool with her getting into the water carefully.

"Kama-chan. Is everything okay?" Parvati asked.

"Y-Yeah..." she muttered.

Shirou then went towards where Parvati was "Don't worry, she's nervous about swimming because she doesn't know how to."

"Oh! I see!" Parvati whispered back with excitement.

"Yeah. So, I'm going to be teaching her how to swim. Is that okay with you?"

Parvati immediately smiled. "Yes senpai!"

"Good. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to teach Kama how to swim." Shirou then went back to where Kama was waiting for him. "Are you ready Kama?"

"Well...as I'll ever be..." she muttered.

"Okay. Then hold my hands for a moment."

Kama was surprised when Shirou said that. "H-Hold your hands?! What for?!"

"To help you balance when you're swimming."

"Is it really necessary?"

"For beginners that is."

"I see...anyways, just help me," Kama said as she grabbed Shirou's arms.

"All right. The first thing to do when swimming is trying to float on the water with your stomach."

"Floating on the water...that shouldn't be hard..." she thought as she began to float on the water on her stomach.

"Okay. Then start kicking your legs while I move backwards. Can do you that?"

"Hmph. I can do something like that."

"Okay then." Shirou then started to move backwards. Kama then did what Shirou asked her to do and kicked in the water. "There we go. See? You're doing it."

Kama blushed for a little bit. "S-Shut up. Just keep moving."

"Okay. Now bring one arm out of the water so that it's "reaching" forward, then bring it back down and use your cupped hand to "push" the water behind you. Alternate arms. To breathe, turn your head to one side under the arm that's currently crawling, lifting enough for you to take a breath. Take a breath under the same arm each time, so that you're breathing once every two strokes. Got it?"

"Yeah."

"Okay then. Now try it."

Kama then did what Shirou told her to do. At first, she had trouble, but over time, she got the hang of it.

"See? Isn't this easy?"

_"He's right. This isn't that bad..."_

Shirou kept moving backwards and Kama continued kicking while stroking at the same time. As they were doing their routine, Parvati looked at the scene with a smile on her face while BB and her sisters looked at it in jealously.

"Aw...Kama seems to get along with senpai..." Parvati thought.

"No fair! I want to swim with senpai too!" BB and her sisters thought.

"Okay. I'm going to let go of you now. Is that okay with you?"

"Yeah."

Shirou then let go of Kama's hands and she started swimming all by herself. As she did, Shirou smiled as he managed to fix Kama's problem.

However, there was one thing he did not expect.

As in a moment, BB and her sisters came up behind him and splashed him in the face, making him turn around to see them with faces of jealously.

"W-What?" Shirou.

"Senpai, swim with us now," BB and her sisters said.

Shirou let out a small sigh.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hah! You can't beat me Illya!"

"We'll see about that Kuro! And the same goes for you Miyu, Sitonai!"

"I won't lose this match. Even if it's you that I have to go up against, Illya."

"The same goes for me," Sitonai said.

Shirou let out a small sigh as he saw Illya, Kuro, Miyu, and Sitonai competing against each other...in a sandcastle building contest. "Just how did things come to this..." he thought.

_(A few minutes ago...)_

"Wah! The beach! It's been a while since we've been here!" Illya exclaimed happily and excitedly.

"Calm down Illya. You're getting too excited," Kuro said.

"Although Illya has a point, it's been a while since we went to the beach," Miyu said.

"Yeah. But this time, we have onii-chan with us!" Sitonai said.

"Now, now Illya-chan, Kuro-chan, Miyu-chan, Sitonai-chan, make sure that you don't wander off here. That includes you Shirou and your counterparts as well."

"Yeah," EMIYA said.

"We got that," EMIYA Alter said as he, along with EMIYA, was setting up the umbrellas and towels for the Emiya family to rest on.

"Good. Now, is there something you want to say Kiritsugu?"

Kiritsugu was silent before saying, "Well...I don't know how to say this...but have fun everyone."

Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu said, "Yes!"

Shirou and his counterparts said, "Got it old man."

As the Emiya family finished setting up their area, Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter went up to the shore of the beach, playing with the water with each other. As they did, Kiritsugu and Irisviel were watching the waves while Illya, her counterparts, Miyu, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were playing with each other.

As they were playing with each other, Kuro then said something.

"Hey Illya, let's have a sandcastle building contest between me, you, Miyu, and Sitonai!"

"Eh?! Why?"

"Well, since we're at the beach, we might as well do this!"

"But Kuro, don't you think this is a bit childish?"

"Eh? Childish? But we are kids you know? Or is it that you're scared of losing to me? In front of onii-chan?" Kuro asked with a bit of smugness in her voice.

Being a little furious after hearing Kuro's tone, Illya felt like not backing down.

"I-I won't lose to you!" she said while pointing at her.

Kuro smiled. "How about you Miyu? Sitonai?"

Surprisingly, Miyu and Sitonai got competitive too.

"I won't lose to you, Kuro," Miyu said.

"Me too," Sitonai said.

"Well then...let the match begin then!"

Soon, Illya, Kuro, Miyu, and Sitonai then went back to where Irisviel and Kiritsugu were and immediately grabbed the plastic shovels and buckets they brought along and immediately started making sandcastles.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Wow. It seems Illya hasn't changed when it comes to competition," Shirou said.

"You can say that again. It's been a while since I've seen Illya fired up over something," EMIYA said.

"Yeah..." EMIYA Alter said.

It has been a few minutes since Kuro's declaration and the competition was heating up. Right now, Illya, Kuro, Miyu, and Sitonai were making sandcastles of great proportions. Not only that, but they were also decorating them as well.

As they were building their sandcastles, they had one thought in mind.

"This battle...is one I cannot lose...!" they all thought as the continued building their sandcastles.

Meanwhile, Irisviel and Kiritsugu were watching the match between the girls. "Oh my. Seems like Illy-chan, Kuro-chan, Miyu-chan, and Sitonai-chan seems to be fired up, aren't they?"

"Yeah..." Kiritsugu replied. "Wonder what they're up to..."

Eventually, Illya, Kuro, Miyu, and Sitonai were done making their sandcastles.

"All right! We're done now!"

"Great! Which now leaves one question...who's going to check them to see which one is the best one?"

"Hm...good point. We can't judge it all by ourselves, and mama wouldn't care which one is better and would give the same vote to all of them."

"That's true. So who's going to judge them?"

Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu were complementing the issue and were thinking of a solution to their problem. As they were thinking, they thought of a solution to their problems.

"Onii-chan!" they all thought.

Soon, Illya, her counterparts, and Miyu went up to where Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were.

"Hm? What is it everyone?" Shirou asked.

"Onii-chan, can you judge our sandcastles to see which one is better?" Illya asked.

"Huh? Me?"

"Yeah. And that includes you two as well," Kuro said to EMIYA and EMIYA Alter.

"Us as well?" EMIYA asked.

"Yeah."

"Why?" EMIYA Alter asked.

"Well...since you two are also onii-chan from other timelines, that means we include you two in this as well."

"I-I see..."

"Anyways, can all you help us?"

Shirou looked at EMIYA and EMIYA Alter and after a few minutes of silence, they nodded.

"Fine. We'll do it," EMIYA said.

"Yes! Follow me onii-chan!" Illya, her counterparts, and Miyu exclaimed in excitement.

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter followed Illya, her counterparts, and Miyu to where their sandcastles were. As they did, they were shocked with what they just made.

Illya's sandcastle was a recreation of her house.

Kuro's sandcastle was a recreation of the Einzbern Castle.

Miyu's sandcastle was a recreation of the Emiya Residence.

And Sitonai's sandcastle was a recreation of Chaldea.

"Wow. They did pretty well with their sandcastles..." Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter thought. It was then that they inspected them carefully. As they inspected them, they were in awe with how similar each of their sandcastles looked to the source of object.

Eventually, they were done with the inspection.

"Well? Who won?" Illya asked.

Shirou took a deep breath before saying his answer.

"Everyone wins."

Illya, her counterparts, and Miyu were surprised by Shirou's answer. "What?! Why?!"

"Well...to be honest, all of you works are amazing in their own way. So it's going to be hard to judge them."

"And plus, all of you did an amazing job because I can sense the amount of hard work all of you made into your sandcastles."

"Yeah. So, can all of you accept our judgement?"

For a moment, everyone was silent for a moment and Shirou and his counterparts were worried if they made them mad.

Then, Illya said something. "Well...if onii-chan asked...then I agree with your decision."

"As do I," Kuro said.

"Me too," Miyu said.

"Me three," Sitonai said.

Shirou let out a sigh as everything was settled. "Well, at least things ended on a good note."

However, it was then that they heard the waves of the beach splashing onto something. As they turned around, Illya, her counterparts, and Miyu were in dismay of what just happened.

The waves just crashed into their sandcastles, ruining them.

"OUR SANDCASTLES!" they exclaimed in horror.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Sherou, how's the view from here? Beautiful, isn't it?" Astraea bragged from the front deck of the luxury yacht as she pressed her body up against Shirou's side.

"Yeah. The sea does look beautiful from here," Shirou replied as he looked at the sea.

"Great. Glad that you like it," Astraea said as she held her body closer to Shirou, making him blush a little bit.

Right now, Shirou and Astraea were on a yacht that Astraea won from a lottery she did earlier. What happened was that earlier, Astraea was walking through town looking for something interesting. As she did, she happened to come upon a lottery. At first, she only entered in the lottery because she was bored and thought it could kill some of her time. During the lottery, she won first prize.

And the first prize was a day on a luxury yacht with a person of their choosing.

That immediately got Astraea excited as she realized she can use this opportunity to spend more time with Shirou and have a whole day with him.

Immediately, Astraea ran back to the resort, found Shirou, and asked him for a day on a yacht with her.

And he accepted it, much to Astraea's joy.

To make matters even better for her, she managed to get a reaction out from Ishtar and her counterpart when she told them about her prize.

It angered them dearly and made them jealous. Especially when she started dragging Shirou away from them.

Which brings Shirou to his current situation right now. Him and Astraea alone together on a private yacht, although a rental one.

_"A whole day on a private yacht with Sherou...this is probably the best day ever! Especially since we're alone together without anyone bothering us! Take that Ishtar you useless goddess! I now have the advantage now!"_

"Um Luvia...are you okay? Your face is quite red," Shirou asked, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Hm?! Oh! It's nothing Sherou!" she replied while giving Shirou some space. "Oh dear! I nearly made myself a fool in front of Sherou! Calm down me, do not embarrass yourself when you're in Sherou's presence!" she thought.

"Luvia? Are you sure that you are okay?"

"Y-Yeah. I-It's probably because of the heat that's over us right now."

"I see. Do you want a drink?"

"Y-Yes!" Astraea replied excitedly.

Shirou then went to the back of the yacht to grab a few drinks from a cooler box he brought over. He then picked up two cans of juice from the cooler box and went back to give one of them to Astraea. "Here."

"Ah. Thanks, Sherou," Astraea said as she took one of the cans from Shirou.

Shirou smiled. "No problem Luvia."

Luvia blushed at the sight of Shirou's smile and quickly opened the can. As she did, she quickly drank the contents of the can, the taste of the juice and the coldness calming her down. She then stopped drinking and sat on the recliner chair that was included in the yacht. Shirou then did the same as well.

As time passed, Shirou and Astraea were basking in the sunlight on the yacht, looking at the blue sky in front of them.

"Nice weather today, isn't it Sherou?" Astraea suddenly said.

"Yeah. Today's weather seems nice Luvia. The sun's bright, there are no clouds in the sky, and we have a nice breeze here," Shirou replied.

"You're right Sherou," Astraea said with a smile. "And that useless goddess isn't here to ruin it all..." she muttered.

"Hm? Did you say something Luvia?" Shirou asked.

"Ah! Oh! It's nothing!" Astraea replied quickly.

"I see..."

Shirou and Astraea continued cloud-gazing on the yacht. As they were watching at the sky, Astraea suddenly had an idea implanted into her head.

"Hey Sherou."

"What is it Luvia?"

"Do you want to go swimming?"

"Sure. Why not?"

Astraea let out a smile. "Great! Let's go then!" She then got out of her seat and went towards the end of the yacht, which was the entrance to the yacht itself. Astraea then jumped into the water.

"Well? What are you waiting for Sherou?" Astraea asked.

Shirou nodded and followed her into the water as well. Soon, Shirou started swimming with Astraea watching him. As Shirou was swimming, Astraea was in awe over how she thought how graceful Shirou's swimming was.

_"Wow. Sherou's swimming looks graceful. Even during our time in the Clock Tower, I have never seen Sherou swim before. Well to be fair, he didn't have any time doing this and the Clock Tower doesn't have a pool..."_

"Luvia? Are you okay?" Shirou asked while stopping swimming for a moment.

"Hm? Oh, yeah," Astraea replied.

Astraea then started to swim as well. As she did, she was swimming gracefully within the waters nearby the yacht, not far where Shirou was.

Eventually, both Shirou and Astraea were tired of swimming and decided to head back up to the yacht.

"Hey Sherou, let's take a break, shall we?"

"Good idea," Shirou replied. However, it was then that Shirou noticed something.

And it was lurking in the waters.

"Sherou?"

Shirou then quickly grabbed one of Astraea arms and moved her behind him.

"S-Sherou?! What's going on?!"

"Luvia, no matter what happens, stay behind me."

Astraea blushed at what Shirou said. "W-What?"

"Just do it."

Astraea nodded and stayed behind Shirou. Shirou then stayed in front of her, waiting for the thing that was lurking in the water to appear itself.

A few seconds later, a shark suddenly appeared in front of the two. Shirou then traced a sword and in an instant, sliced the shark in half, killing it instantly.

Shirou let out a small sigh as the pieces of the shark fell into the water. "Luvia, the danger is now over."

Astraea didn't say anything.

"Luvia? Are you okay?" Shirou asked as he pressed one of his hands to her forehead, making her face go red with a giant blush.

In an instant, Astraea passed out from seeing Shirou saving her and touching her.

"Luvia?!"

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"This outfit would look great on our praetor, don't you think?" Saber Nero asked to her counterparts.

"Yes! This outfit would look great on him as well!" Caster Nero replied in agreement as she brought out another suit for Shirou to wear.

"Agreed! And this outfit would look great on him as well!" Bride Nero exclaimed in excitement as she was holding a fancy outfit for Shirou to wear.

Meanwhile, Shirou was in the dressing room, waiting for what outfit the Neros have brought over for him to wear. As he was waiting, his mind went over to the events that brought him up to this point.

_"Master...just what are you up to..."_

_(A few hours ago...)_

Ritsuka was huffing as he was trying to catch some breath from the running he was doing. "Where are you Shirou?" he thought as he was trying to find Shirou in the hotel resort he was in. He then restored his breath and continued finding him.

Eventually, Ritsuka found Shirou in the lobby. "Shirou!" he called out, grabbing Shirou's attention.

"Hm? Oh, master. What seems to be the problem?" Shirou asked.

Ritsuka didn't say anything but came up to Shirou immediately.

"Master?"

In an instant, Ritsuka grabbed one of Shirou's arms and started dragging him across the lobby and headed towards the stairs.

"M-Master?! What's going on?" Shirou asked, not expecting this from Ritsuka.

"I'll explain everything later! For now, just let me take you!" Ritsuka replied as he continued dragging him, gathering the attention of anyone passing by. Eventually, they arrived at the room Ritsuka was staying at. He then unlocked the door and went inside along with Shirou. As they went inside, Shirou was surprised with what was inside of Ritsuka's room.

Because inside the room was Nero and her counterparts.

"N-Nero?" Shirou said in surprise.

"Umu! Glad to meet you here my praetor!" Saber Nero said.

"Umu! Thank you master for bringing him here!" Caster Nero said.

"Umu! Now we can start our day together!" Bride Nero said.

Shirou then looked at the scene in confusion and then turned to Ritsuka for answers. "Um master, what's going on? Why are Nero and her counterparts doing here in your room?

"Well...here's the thing Shirou. Nero and her counterparts wanted to spend time with you...so they asked me to bring you here."

"I-I see. But was it really necessary to drag me here?"

"Well I had to. Or else they'll say they'll get angry and will sit out of battle..." Ritsuka muttered.

"I-Is that so?"

"Y-Yeah. Anyways, can you spend a day with them?"

"Well, I can, but-"

"Great! Now if you will excuse me-" Ritsuka was about to say but was cut off from Nero and her counterparts and they were getting close to Shirou.

"A date! A date! This is like a dream come true, umu!" Saber Nero said.

"Indeed! A private date with our praetor! Just like a honeymoon, umu!" Bride Nero said.

"Exactly! Now let us leave now my praetor!" Caster Nero said.

Nero and her counterparts then left the room with Shirou, leaving Ritsuka alone in his room. Ritsuka sighed at the situation he just had brought Shirou over into.

_"Oh boy..."_

_(Back to the present...)_

Afterwards, Shirou along with Nero and her counterparts went for a day out in town. They ate at a fancy restaurant, went to many local landmarks, and went shopping. Shirou let out a soft sigh his mind as he was waiting for what outfit Nero and her counterparts have for him to wear. Right now, he and Nero and her counterparts were in a high-quality fashion store. As he was waiting, he heard a knock from the door. "Hm? What is it?" he asked as he opened the door.

"My praetor! Try this outfit next!" Saber Nero said as she handed him a few clothes.

"Ah. Thanks," Shirou replied as he grabbed the suit. He then closed the door behind him and looked at the clothes. The clothes that Saber Nero gave him were blue jeans, a black tee, a black bomber jacket, and white sneakers. Shirou then put the clothes on.

"Well? How are they my praetor?"

"They fit fine."

"Excellent! Can we take a look?"

"Well...okay." Shirou then opened the door, letting Nero and her counterparts see the progress of their work. "H-How do I look?"

Saber Nero smiled. "You look amazing my praetor!"

"Umu! As expected from my saber counterpart!" Caster Nero said.

"Yes! Her taste in fashion is like ours! Graceful and amazing!" Bride Nero said.

"Well, glad that you like it," Shirou replied.

"Great. Now try these clothes on!" Caster Nero said as she handed him some clothes.

"As well as these too!" Bride Nero said as she handed him some clothes as well.

Shirou then grabbed the clothes Caster Nero and Bride Nero handed him and closed the door to the dressing room. As he did, he then looked that the clothes Caster Nero gave him. The clothes Caster Nero gave him were black jeans, a white crew neck tee, a black field jacket, and black boots. The clothes Bride Nero gave him were a light blue washed denim, a white crew neck tee, and white sneakers.

Shirou then wore Caster Nero's outfit first and showed them to Nero and her counterparts. "Well?"

Caster Nero smiled at the outfit she gave to Shirou. "Umu! It looks amazing on you!"

"Yes. It does!" Bride Nero said.

"Umu! The clothes match with you, my praetor!" Saber Nero said.

"Okay then." Shirou then went back into the changing room and changed his clothes to the ones Bride Nero gave him. After a few minutes of changing clothes, Shirou then appeared in front of Nero and her counterparts, wearing the outfit Bride Nero gave him.

As Nero and her counterparts saw the outfit Shirou was wearing, they were in awe of how good he looked.

"Wow! That looks amazing on you!" Bride Nero said.

"Indeed! The colors match you!" Saber Nero said.

"Umu! You look so handsome with them!" Caster Nero said.

"I see. Well then, are we done here?" Shirou asked.

"Nope! We still have more outfits for you to wear my praetor!" Nero and her counterparts said.

Shirou sighed. This was going to be a long day...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Um...Jeanne D'Arc Alter, are we done with this yet?"

"Nope. We still got a few more drawings to finish by tomorrow. I need a lot of drawings for this year's Comiket. Now just stand there and pose," Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied.

Shirou let out a small sigh as he continued posing for Jeanne D'Arc Alter. "As you wish."

"Good." Jeanne D'Arc Alter then continued working on her work on her digital tablet. As she drew, Shirou let out a small sigh as he continued posing for her.

"Wow. I never knew Jeanne D'Arc was knowledgeable in this. In fact, I didn't know that she was able to do this or have this as a hobby!" Shirou thought.

"Hey. Don't move," Jeanne D'Arc Alter reminded him.

Right now, Shirou was posing for Jeanne D'Arc Alter because she needed someone to pose for her drawings she plans to bring to this year's Comiket. The pose Shirou was doing was a pose like how a samurai was about to draw his/her sword to perform battojutsu.

And why out of all the other servants in Chaldea did she happen to choose Emiya Shirou as the subject of her drawings?

Simple. One, he was well known around Chaldea, which meant he was popular.

Two, he is a nice guy.

And three, he happened to be nearby her at the time.

A few hours have passed since Shirou was doing the posing for Jeanne D'Arc Alter's drawing. Eventually, she was done with the drawing.

"Okay, now to print it out," she thought as she then let the printer print out a copy of it.

"Well? How did the drawing turn out?" Shirou asked.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter let out a sigh of relief with proudness in it as the drawing she drew turned out to be exactly how she wanted it to be. "It's excellent. Now all I need to do is to print out multiple copies and by morning, we'll have multiple copies to bring over to Comiket."

"I see. Is that everything that you need to do for today?"

"Nope. I think we're good for today," Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied. "Anyways, can you help me carry the boxes tomorrow when you come with me to Comiket?"

"Eh? I have to?" Shirou asked as he was surprised.

"Well duh! You did help me in this after all, so I figure that you deserve some credit for this. You should be grateful you know, I even put your name on the drawing as well!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter said as she held up the finished picture in front of Shirou.

Shirou then looked at the picture and as shown, his name was there as well.

"Well. Did not expect that."

It was then that there was a knock on the door to Jeanne D'Arc Alter's room. Jeanne D'Arc Alter then opened the door to see who it was.

In front of her was her non-altered counterpart and her santa lily counterpart, Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily.

"Hello! How have you been doing, my little sister!" Jeanne D'Arc said cheerfully.

"Tch. Fine, I guess..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied.

"I see! Are you done with your activity you were doing with Shirou?"

"Yeah."

"Great! Hope you have fun with your new friend here!"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter blushed. "H-He's not my friend! A-Anyways, can you leave now?!"

Jeanne D'Arc ignored what her altered counterpart said and turned to Shirou. "Hey Shirou! Thank you for helping my younger sister for this! You know, she had a hard time thinking of ideas for this year's event!"

"Hey! Don't say anything unnecessary!"

"Also, thanks for helping my santa lily for finishing her summer homework!"

"Yeah! Thank you, Shirou-san!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Okay! Can you leave now?!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter yelled, not wanting to hear any more.

"All right then! Have fun with Shirou my little sister!" Jeanne D'Arc said cheerfully as she left. Jeanne D'Arc Alter then quickly shut the door. She then turned to Shirou with a menacing look on her face.

"Don't...say...anything..." she muttered.

Shirou nodded.

_(The next day...)_

"Wow. There is a lot of people here..." Shirou said as he was in awe of the amount of people at Comiket.

"Yeah. This is what happens every year when Comiket comes..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied.

Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter were at the location of this year's Comiket, waiting behind a table filled with copies of Jeanne D'Arc Alter's drawings. Right now, Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter were done setting up their booth area and were waiting for people to come over to see Jeanne D'Arc's artwork.

With some help from Shirou, of course.

"Hey there Jeanne D'Arc Alter," a voice said.

Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter turned to see who the voice was. As shown, it was Blackbeard wearing his usual outfit.

"Hm? Oh, hey Blackbeard."

"Blackbeard?! Wait, Blackbeard is here?!" Shirou thought.

"So, what did you create this year?"

"Oh. Just an art book along with a few doujinshis."

"I see," Blackbeard said before he turned his attention to Shirou. "Ah, excuse me for not introducing myself earlier. My name is Blackbeard. It is a pleasure meeting you Emiya Shirou."

"Eh? Ah, it's a pleasure to meet you too," Shirou replied as he bowed in front of Blackbeard.

Blackbeard then bowed as well for curtsey. "So, what are you doing here?"

"Well, Jeanne D'Arc Alter told me to come here since I helped her with her work."

Blackbeard was surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah."

"I see. What did Shirou help you with Jeanne D'Arc Alter?"

"Take a look in the art book and you'll see. But first, you must pay first," Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied.

Blackbeard then paid Jeanne D'Arc Alter and, bought a copy of the art book, and went through the pages inside the fan book. As he did, he saw one page that shocked him.

It was the drawing of Emiya Shirou in the battojutsu stance, and it was in high quality. Blackbeard couldn't let his eyes move from the page as the drawing itself in his eyes was perfection.

"Jeanne D'Arc Alter...this artwork of Emiya Shirou...it's beyond perfection! The pose, the face, everything about him looks amazing! In fact, I'll buy another one!" he exclaimed as he placed more money on the table.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter smirked. "Pleasure doing business with you Blackbeard."

"No problem! Now if you will excuse me, there are more doujinshis I need to search for!" he said as he left quickly.

After Blackbeard left, Shirou was in a state of silence and shock.

"Surprised?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter asked, snapping Shirou out of his shock.

"Y-Yeah. I never knew that Blackbeard is a otaku..." Shirou replied.

"Yeah. Well, you'll get used to it."

"Eh...I never seen Blackbeard so excited before..." a new voice said.

Shirou and Jeanne D'Arc Alter quickly turned to see where the new voice came from. It was Osakabehime.

"Osakabehime?" Shirou asked.

"Ah! Shirou-san! Nice to meet you again!" Osakabehime said with a smile on her face.

"Yeah. Nice to meet you too. What are you doing here?" Shirou asked.

"Me? I'm here at Comiket as a creator too. Me, Jeanne D'Arc Alter, and Blackie come here every year you know."

"I see..."

"Yeah. Anyways, why are you here Shirou-san?"

"Well, he's here because he assisted me in one of my works," Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied.

"Really? Which one?" Osakabehime asked.

"That one," Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied as she pointed at the stack of art books. "But you need to pay up first."

In her curiosity, Osakabehime then paid Jeanne D'Arc Alter, took one of the copies of the art book, and looked at the pages. It was then that she stumbled upon the drawing of Emiya Shirou in the battojutsu stance.

And it looked glorious to her.

"J-Jeanne D'Arc Alter...did you draw this?" she stuttered.

"Yeah."

"A-And did Shirou help you?"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter let out a smug grin. "Yeah. He did the posing for me. Quite impressive if I have to say myself."

"Impressive?! This is perfect! Everything about this drawing the just perfect!" Osakabehime said in excitement. "In fact, I'll buy two more of them!" she exclaimed as he dropped more money onto the table.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter smiled. "With pleasure."

"Thanks! Now if you will excuse me, I need to find that otome game someone is selling!" Osakabehime then left in a hurry.

"Wow. I never seen Osakabehime like this before..." Shirou said.

"Yeah. Anyways, help me out a bit. We got customers here," Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

Soon, people started to line up in front of the table, asking for the art book. Due to the amount of attention it received because of Blackbeard and Osakabehime, a lot of people wanted to buy the art book.

"Hey Shirou, bring out more of the art books!"

"Yes."

Shirou then brought out more of the art books. As time passed, people bought more books and Jeanne D'Arc Alter kept earning money.

It was then that a certain servant came over.

"Shirou."

Shirou realized this tone and tuned around to see Arturia Alter in her Shinjuku outfit.

And she does not look happy.

"A-Alter?"

"Jeanne D'Arc Alter, what is the mean of this?"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter let out a smirk. "Well, he's been helping me here. Is there a problem?"

"Yes. You're taking too much time from him." Arturia Alter then grabs one of Shirou's arms and procced to take him. "My turn."

"Hey! He's still working here!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter said as she grabbed Shirou's other arm.

Not wanting to back down, both of them proceeded to grab him on both sides, pulling both of his arms.

"Let him go!"

"No, you let him go!"

Meanwhile Shirou was in pain from both of his arms being pulled by the alters. "It hurts..."

It also didn't help that everyone at Comiket was also looking at him with jealously in their eyes...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking through the street in the night, admiring the bright lights the nearby was giving off in the night sky. "Wow, the city looks pretty when it's nighttime. It looks like a carnival over there." he thought.

As he continued walking, it was then that he bumped in two certain people.

"Okita? Musashi?"

"Eh? Shirou-san?"

"Shirou-kun?"

Both Okita and Musashi stopped their running for a moment. As they did, Okita asked Shirou a question. "Shirou-san. Have you seen my altered counterpart for a moment?"

"Uh no, I haven't seen her. Why?"

"Well..."

(A few minutes ago...)

Okita and Okita Alter were in their room, watching television in the comfort of their hotel room.

"Hm, what's on television right now is boring. Isn't there anything that is interesting on right now...?" Okita Alter thought as she flipped through channel to channel. As she was flipping through the channels, she suddenly stopped at one channel upon seeing what was going on in the channel.

The channel that she stopped on was a channel showing a fireworks display. The fireworks that were being lit up in channel were showing explosions of various designs. Some were explosions of simple designs while others were explosions of intricate designs.

Okita Alter was in awe of the fireworks. "Wow. Those explosions look colorful and pretty..."

"What are you looking at, alter me?" Okita asked, grabbing Okita Alter's attention.

"This," Okita Alter replied as she pointed at the television screen.

Okita then went looked at the television to see what was making her altered counterpart so interested. As she did, like her altered counterpart, she was interested in the fireworks as well.

"Wow. Those fireworks are pretty..." Okita said as she was in awe of how pretty the fireworks were.

"Mmh..." Okita Alter said as she continued to stare at the fireworks. As time passed, the television program showing the fireworks has ended, and yet Okita Alter was still in thought.

"Are you okay my alter self?" Okita asked, worried about her altered counterpart's behavior.

"Yeah. It's just that...I want to play with fireworks now," Okita Alter replied.

Okita was surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah. Do you want to join me?"

"Um...sorry, but I don't think we can. In fact, I don't think there are any here."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

Silence occurred between the two.

"Then I'll find some around here," Okita Alter said before she left the room.

Realizing what she just did, Okita went after her altered counterpart. "Hey! Come back here!" Then Okita and her alter were chasing each other with Okita Alter trying to find fireworks to play with.

It was the that Okita ended up bumping into a certain servant.

"Ouch!"

"Ow!"

Both Okita and the servant rubbed each other's heads as they were easing the pain of the head bump. As they did, they saw who they bumped into.

"Musashi-san?!"

"Eh? Okita-chan? What are you doing here?"

"Eh? Ah, have you seen my altered counterpart somewhere?"

"Her? Hm...earlier, I did see her running out of the entrance and headed towards the nearby town. Why?"

"Well, she said she's trying to find fireworks and she thinks there are some in the nearby town. Anyways, I need to find her! Can you help me?" Okita asked.

"Sure! Anything for one of my friends!" Musashi replied.

"Great! Anyways, let's go!"

(Back to the present...)

"And that's why," Okita said.

"So, let me guess this straight here. The reason why you two are running around here is to find Okita Alter before she tries to do something?" Shirou asked.

"Yes," Musashi replied. "Anyways, can you help us?"

Shirou thought about what Musashi said and replied, "Sure."

"Great! Help me find her then!" Okita replied quickly before she left along with Musashi. Shirou soon quickly followed her. As he did, they then were searching the entire town to see where Okita Alter was.

However, they couldn't find her.

"Jeez...where is my altered counterpart..." Okita huffed with breath.

"Yeah...we looked all over the place...and we can't find her..." Musashi replied while taking a few breaths.

"I agree..." Shirou said.

"Hm? What are all of you doing here?" a familiar voice said.

Shirou, Okita, and Musashi quickly turned to the source of the familiar voice. As they did, they realized who it was.

It was Okita Alter, and she was holding two plastic bags in her hands.

"Okita Alter?"

"Hi Shirou-san."

"My altered self, what are in those bags?" Okita asked fearfully.

"Hm? Oh these? Fireworks."

Everyone was surprised with what Okita Alter has in her hands. "Fireworks?! Where did you get those?!" Musashi asked.

"Hm? From that store over there?" Okita Alter said as she pointed to a nearby store.

Shirou, Okita, and Musashi then looked at the store where Okita Alter got the fireworks. As they did, they realized something.

The store that was selling the fireworks happened to be at the same area where Okita and Musashi bumped into Shirou. All three of them were agape over how they overlooked that.

"Anyways, do all of you want to light off some fireworks?" Okita Alter asked innocently.

_(A few minutes later...)_

Shirou looked at the tiny sparkler in his hand as he held it. Right now, Shirou, Okita, Okita Alter, and Musashi were at the nearby beach playing with the fireworks Okita Alter bought earlier. It was a relief for them that the fireworks Okita Alter bought were ones that weren't harmful and were rather kid-sized ones.

While it did hamper Okita's Alter a mood a little bit, she still liked the fireworks.

"Shirou-san? Is this all right?" Okita asked as she was pointing at a nearby firework she set up earlier.

"Yeah. That should be okay. Now just light it up."

Okita then nodded and lit the string connecting to the firework. As the fire reached to the firework, the firework went up into the sky, exploding into a one-color design of particles. "Wow...it's beautiful," Okita said as she saw the explosion.

"Shirou-san, can I light up mine too?" Okita Alter asked.

"Sure."

Okita Alter then lit up her firework. Soon, the firework went into the sky and exploded in a blue star design. "Pretty..." she said as she looked at the firework.

"So that's what a firework looks like..." Musashi thought as she looked at the fireworks in the sky. "Okay, it's my turn now!" she exclaimed excitedly as she lit up her firework. As she did, the fuse then reached the firework, lighting it up. Soon, it went up to the sky and blew up, creating a yellow pattern of particles. Musashi was in awe of the firework that lit up. "Wow!"

Shirou then dropped the sizzler he was carrying into a bucket of water and looked at the fireworks that were in the sky. "Fireworks huh...it's been a long time since I've seen those...brings back so many memories with my old man..." he thought.

"Shirou-kun, aren't you going to light up your firework as well?" Musashi asked, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah." Shirou then grabbed a random firework from the bag Okita Alter brought over, placed it on the ground, and lit it. Eventually, the firework then launched itself into the sky, exploding into a red design of particles.

Shirou looked at the firework exploding in the sky with a smile on his face.

"You like fireworks, don't you Shirou-san?" Okita asked.

"Yeah. Reminds me of the times I used to spend with my old man in the summer."

"Does he like watching the fireworks too?" Okita Alter asked.

"Yeah. In fact, this was one of his favorite things to do in the summer."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

"Well then...want to shoot up more fireworks?" Musashi asked.

"Well...do you want to?"

"Yes!" Okita Alter and Musashi said followed up by a sigh from Okita.

And the group of servants continued lighting up fireworks and watching the explode in the night sky. As they were watching, Shirou remembered that he only had one more day of vacation left.

_"After this day is over, I will only have one day left. Then it's back to Chaldea with master and the others. Wonder how my last day will turn out...?"_

_Little did Shirou know that his last day was not be a normal day..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa! This chapter took way longer than I thought. Anyways, here's the next chapter. Hope you all like it. Sorry that it took so long to make. Had to deal with procrastination and writer's block.
> 
> Anyways, classes for the Fall semester started already, which means I'll have less time writing.


	40. The Holy Shirou War

Today was the last day of the vacation, and tomorrow, Ritsuka along with his servants would return to Chaldea and resume his duties.

_"Well, today's is my last day of vacation...wonder what should I do next?"_

However, as he was thinking, he then felt a weird feeling in the air. At that moment, he knew that the area around him wasn't safe. "What the heck...what's this weird feeling in the air...it's making me tired for some reason..." he thought.

And then, Shirou fell to the ground, sleeping.

"Is phase one complete?" a voice asked.

"Yes. Our target has fallen asleep and has been neutralized," another voice replied.

"Great. Now let's take him."

"Yeah..."

_(A few hours later...)_

"Wonder what we are doing here?" Arturia asked.

"I don't know. However, if Merlin told us to be here, then I got a weird feeling about this..." Arturia Alter replied.

"Merlin huh? Wonder what teacher is up to now?" Arturia Lily asked.

"Who knows? One thing for sure that it's going to involve trouble," Lancer Arturia said.

"That I can agree on," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Me too," Ruler Arturia said.

"Speaking of which, Irisviel is a part of this too," Archer Arturia said.

"Irisviel? Great, this can't be good..." Rider Arturia Alter asked.

"Yeah. If they are planning something together...then I have a bad feeling about this..." Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Who cares! What I want to know is why we were brought here!" Mysterious Heroine X yelled.

"So do I," Mysterious Heroine X Alter replied.

"Me too," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

"Mou...what are we doing here...?" Ishtar asked to her counterparts.

"I don't know. Form what we heard, there was going to be an event here," Ereshkigal replied.

"An event huh? I hope there is some sort of prize here..." Rider Ishtar said.

"What kind of event is this going to be...?"Parvati said.

"Who knows? Hope it's something good..." Kama said.

"Yeah. Otherwise I'll be mad..." BB said.

"Big sister. Please don't..." Passionlip said.

"Yeah. Otherwise it'll be a pain in the ass to clean up your mess later..." Meltlilith said.

"Yeah. I don't want to clean up your mess..." Kingprotea said.

"What is mama up to now?" Illya asked.

"I don't know. One thing for sure though is that there's going to be chaos," Kuro replied.

"Agreed," Sitonai said.

"Yeah," Miyu said.

"Why did Sherou's mother call all of us here? Is there something going to happen soon? And why is she here?" Astraea said as she looked at Ishtar and her counterparts.

"This amount of many people here...we might have a huge event on our hands!" Nero said excitedly.

"Umu! And it could be fun as well!" Caster Nero replied as well.

"Umu! Wonder what's the prize of an event like this?" Brider Nero asked.

"Wow...this many people gathered here..." Jeanne D'Arc said.

"Tch. I can't believe you let me drag me here. And to an event that included her as well..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said as she glared at Arturia Alter in the distance.

"Now, now, older me. Calm down," Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Wonder what's going to happen here..." Okita said.

"I don't know. Hopefully something fun," Okita Alter replied.

"Oh my! This amount of people here...is something big going to happen here?" Musashi said.

At the moment, Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi were standing on the beach, waiting. What happened was that earlier, Irisviel along with Merlin invited them to the beach for reasons they did not want to say. When they arrived though, what they saw surprised them.

When they arrived, in front of them was a giant circle, a box of water guns, and a stage.

Right now, all of them were waiting for Irisviel and Merlin to appear, wanting to know what was going on.

Eventually, Irisviel and Merlin then appeared in front of the large group of servants on the stage. "Hi! As many of you probably recognize me, my name is Irisviel Von Einzbern! And the person that is next to me is Merlin! The Wizard of Flowers!" Irisviel exclaimed in a cheery tone.

Merlin then took a bow. "Pleased to meet all of you," he said with a smile.

Immediately, Arturia and her counterparts had a weird feeling upon seeing Merlin smile. "That smile...he's up to something for sure..." they all thought.

"Anyways! I have brought all of you here for a competition!" Iriviel said.

"Competition? What kind of competition?" Arturia and her counterparts asked.

Irisviel smiled. "It's simple. See that box of water guns over there? Yeah, there are enough for everyone here and they are preloaded with water. The objective of this competition is to have the least amount of water on you. However, you can't not refill your water guns, so use them wisely! Last person with their water gun not empty is the winner!"

"I see. What's the prize?" Ishtar and her counterparts asked.

Irisviel smiled upon that hearing that question. "Merlin, if you would do the honors."

"As you wish!" Merlin then twirled his staff and then summoned something. As he did, a glass container appeared.

However, it was no ordinary glass container.

Because the glass container held Shirou inside, sleeping.

And it made everyone completely shocked.

"SHIROU?!" Arturia and her counterparts yelled.

"EMIYA-KUN?!" Ishtar and her counterparts yelled.

"SENPAI?!" Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters yelled.

"ONII-CHAN?!" Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu yelled.

"SHEROU?!" Astraea yelled.

"MY PRAETOR?!" Nero and her counterparts yelled.

"SHIROU/SHIROU-SAN?!" Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts yelled.

"SHIROU-SAN?!" Okita and her counterpart yelled.

"SHIROU-KUN?!" Musashi yelled.

Upon hearing the voices outside, Shirou slowly opened his eyes. "Mmph...mnph...what's with the noise...what's going on..." he muttered.

However, when he got a better view of the situation, his mind went into shock upon seeing himself in a glass container and the servants in front of him. "What the heck?! How did I get here?! Wait, the last thing I remember was falling asleep due to something weird in the air! Who's the one that put me in here?!"

Shirou then turned around and to his horror, he saw Irisviel and Merlin right next to him. "Just my luck...why?" he thought.

"Mama! What's the meaning of this?!" Illya and her counterparts alongside Miyu asked.

"Hm? Oh this? Shirou is the prize for this event," Irisviel calmly stated like there was nothing wrong.

"But why?!" Shirou yelled out.

"Well it's because despite all of those interactions I keep watching, you never made your move!" Irisviel pouted.

Shirou was surprised with what Irisviel said, especially the last part of her sentence. "Watching?! You were watching me?!"

"Yeah!"

Upon hearing Irisviel's answer, it was when that Ishtar, her counterparts, and a few others realized something.

"Wait a minute...so the traps and the rocks falling on us..." Ishtar and her counterparts said to Irisviel.

"And the shark that was coming at us..." Astraea said to Irisviel.

"And her appearance at Comiket..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said to Irisviel.

"Yes! All of that was my doing!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly.

Everyone nearly sweat dropped from what Irisviel just said, especially Shirou, Illya and her counterparts, and Miyu.

"Anyways! Why is Sherou the prize?! And what kind of prize is this?! And what kind of event is this?!" Astraea exclaimed.

Irisviel smiled. "Merlin. If you would please."

Merlin smirked, installing a chill in Arturia and her counterparts. "Well...this competition is known as the Holy Shirou War! And the winner of this competition...gets to keep Shirou for an entire week!"

For a moment, everyone was silent upon hearing what Merlin said. After all, he just called the competition "the Holy Shirou War" and the prize is a week of keeping Shirou.

After a few seconds has passed, Shirou decided to speak up. "Mom! What are you thinking?!" Shirou yelled out.

"What am I thinking? This is the only way to decide who gets you!" Irisviel replied with a pout.

"That's not what I'm taking about! Why did you think of an idea like this?! And why did you involve Merlin of all people?!"

Merlin let out a smile. "Well. I can't let a lovely lady like her do all the work, can I? And plus, this seemed fun!"

"That's not the point! And plus, do you think everyone here will agree to this?!"

"Well...judging by how everyone is acting...well, just look and see," Merlin replied with a sly coy on his face.

Shirou then turned around to see what Merlin was talking about. As he looked, he realized something.

Everyone was uncharacteristically quiet for a long time.

_"A whole week of Shirou to myself..."_

_"A whole week of Emiya-kun to myself..."_

_"A whole week of Senpai to myself..."_

_"A whole week of Onii-chan to myself..."_

_"A whole week of Sherou to myself..."_

_"A whole week of my praetor to myself..."_

_"A whole week of Shirou/Shirou-san to myself..."_

_"A whole week of Shirou-san to myself..."_

_"A whole week of Shirou-kun to myself..."_

The silence was starting to freak Shirou out a little bit. "E-Everyone...?" Shirou muttered.

Irisviel smiled. "Well?"

For a moment, the silence continued. Then there was a response from everyone.

"This match...I'll accept it!" they all said in unison.

Shirou was shocked while Irisviel and Merlin let out a smile. "All right then! Then each of you grab a water gun!" Irisviel exclaimed in excitement.

Soon, everyone started following Irisviel's command and each of them grabbed a water gun. As everyone had a water gun in their hands, Iriviel then gave the countdown.

"All right! Let the Holy Shirou War commence! Ready...go!"

Then the entire beach was turned into a war zone as everyone went up against each other in a no-holds water gun battle.

And it was intense.

"Tch...I won't lose to you!" Arturia said as she shot at her altered counterpart.

"Likewise. Shirou is mine," Arturia Alter replied as she dodged while shooting at Arturia.

"Um...I know this is a competition...but can we work together to beat the others?" Arturia Lily asked nervously.

"Sorry Lily. It pains me to bear the news, but it's a free-for all battle royal over who gets Shirou for a week," Lancer Arturia said as she shot at her altered counterpart.

"That's right. There can only be one winner here," Lancer Arturia Alter said as she kept dodging her counterpart's shooting.

"Yes. And that is me," Ruler Arturia said as she prepared herself to shoot both Lancer Arturia and Lancer Arturia Alter.

"I won't allow that to happen!" Archer Arturia said as she interfered with Ruler Arturia's actions.

"Yeah! So back off!" Rider Arturia Alter said as she tried to shoot Archer Arturia, but failed as she dodged it.

"The same goes for you too!" Santa Arturia Alter said as she began to shoot Rider Arturia Alter.

"That's it! No saber-face is going to take what's rightfully mine!" Mysterious Heroine X yelled as she began to shoot at her counterparts.

"Like I would allow you. Shirou is mine," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said as she clashed with her non-altered counterpart.

"No, he's mine!" Mysterious Heroine XX yelled as she prepared herself to shoot both Mysterious Heroine X and Mysterious Heroine X Alter.

Meanwhile, Ishtar and her counterparts were having a tussle with Astraea while Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters were fighting amongst each other and Ilya and her counterparts along with Miyu were doing the same.

"It's about time that we settled this Astraea!" Ishtar yelled as she shot water at her.

"You can say that again! I can't leave Sherou in your hands!" Astraea replied as she did the same.

"I should say the same about you!" Rider Ishtar said.

"Um...would everyone calm down here?" Ereshkigal asked.

"No!" Both Ishtars and Astraea replied.

"Senpai is mine!" Parvati exclaimed as she shot some water at Kama.

"No. He's mine," Kama said as she dodged it.

"Fufufufu...the things I'm going to do to senpai when I win him later..." BB muttered as she began to shoot at her sisters. "Don't get in my way!"

"I-I won't allow that big sister!" Passionlip said as she dodged it.

"Yeah! And plus, you're creeping me out with your idea of things..." Meltlilith said as she did the same as Passionlip.

"Yeah. It's making me scared..." Kingprotea said as she did the same as her other sisters.

"Onii-chan is mine Kuro!" Illya yelled as she sprayed water at Kuro.

"No! He's mine!" Kuro replied as she sprayed some back.

"Hey! That's my line!" Sitonai said as she aimed at Miyu and shot some water at her.

"Even if I have to go up against you Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, I'm not losing this match," Miyu said as she dodged it.

At the same time, Nero and her counterparts were fighting against Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts and Okita and her counterpart were fighting against Musashi.

"Umu! So, I take it that you're interested in this, Jeanne D'Arc! Just what do you hope to gain by winning this competition?" Nero asked as she clashed with Jeanne D'Arc.

"Well, I just want some more help from Shirou in math. That is all," Jeanne D'Arc replied.

"I see. And what about you Jeanne D'Arc Alter?" Caster Nero asked as she shot water at Jeanne D'Arc Alter.

"Hmph. Well...let's just say he's of great use to me..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said as she shot water at Caster Nero. "After all, he's the one thing that my enemy is weak against...and he's perfect for art and manga references to draw..."

"And what about you, young Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily?" Bride Nero asked as she shot at Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily.

"I want Shirou to help me more! Especially when it comes to helping with my older selves!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily replied as she dodged it.

Bride Nero let out of smile. "Of course! After all, he is skilled in many areas! It's a shame that there can only be one winner here, but no matter! Good luck to everyone here!"

(Meanwhile, at the fight between Okita, her altered counterpart, and Musashi...)

"I can't let you win Musashi. I want to eat Shirou-san's oden for a whole week," Okita Alter said as she clashed with both her non-altered counterpart and Musashi.

Musashi smiled. "Me neither. I want to eat Shirou-kun's udon for a whole week," Musashi replied as she shot water at both of them. "And what about you Okita? Are you interested in that?"

"No! I'm not interested in that!" Okita replied as she dodged the shot of water.

"Really? Then what are you interested in with?"

"Well...I just want to have a duel with Shirou-san for once," Okita replied with a blush on her face.

At that moment, both Musashi and Okita Alter gave thought to what Okita said earlier. It was then that there was a slight change in their goals.

"Okay. First goal is to taste Shirou-san's/Shirou-kun's food, then have a duel against him later," they thought in unison.

_(Back at the stage...)_

"Oh my, guess the competition here seems to be a bit heated, don't you think Ms. Irisviel?" Merlin asked while drinking some water from a water bottle.

"Yes. But then again, this is what I expected from the many girls that my son has attracted!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly. "I wonder who's going to win him..."

Merlin let out a smirk. "In my opinion, I would say the winner would be my student or any of her alternate counterparts."

"Really? What makes you think that?"

"Because they have one advantage over the rest of the girls."

"What?"

Merlin's smirk even grew larger. "He's their queen."

"Oh yeah. I remember..." Irisviel replied with a chuckle as she remembered the many times Arturia and her counterparts along with the Knights of the Round kept calling or teasing Shirou by calling him, "Queen Shirou."

"Yeah..."

Meanwhile, Shirou was just watching the entire battle in disbelief over what just happened. "W-Wow. I can't believe this is happening...speaking of which, I can't stay in this box forever!" Shirou then proceeded to trace Kanshou and Bakuya. However, to his surprise, his projections did not appear. "What the-?!"

As if on cue, Irisviel then said something to Shirou. "Oh yeah. Shirou, the box you're in now is specifically designed by Merlin to seal a magus's magefcraft away when said magus is inside. So, don't think of trying to escape out of the box."

Shirou was surprised by the timing of what she just said. "How did you-"

"Mother's intuition," she replied with a smile on her face.

Shirou was silent upon hearing this. "Jeez. I can't believe that mom actually asked Merlin to make a box to seal me in...or maybe Merlin just made this out of boredom and just gave it to her. Well, guess there's nothing that I can do right now. At least the situation hasn't gone even more weird...even though it's really weird right now."

However, as he thought that, Shirou' E-Rank luck would kick in.

Because at that moment, a certain servant arrived on the field.

And he was not happy.

"FAKER!"

Recognizing that voice, Shirou looked up to see Archer Gilgamesh, floating above the stage with an angry look on his face.

"Why of all people is he here?!" Shirou thought as he watched Archer Gilgamesh hovering over the stage.

Soon, everyone who were fighting amongst each other noticed Gilgamesh's appearance and stopped fighting for a moment. "What the heck?! Why is he here?!" they all thought.

"Oh my. Guess we have an uninvited guest crashing the party here," Irisviel said.

"It seems so," Merlin said. Then he turned to Gilgamesh. "What are you doing here Gilgamesh?"

Gilgamesh growled. "Him," he said while pointing at Shirou.

"Why?" Irisviel asked.

"Because I cannot stand his entire existence as a whole! First of all, the prize should be me, not him! Especially when it comes to Saber and her counterparts!" he yelled angrily.

"Is that so? So, what is your plan then?" Merlin asked.

"Hmph. Isn't it obvious? I'm going to kill him! That's what I'll do! And then I'll take his place as the prize!"

At that moment, everyone stopped fighting amongst each other. Even Irisviel's mood went down a little bit upon hearing Archer Gilgamesh's words.

"Oh really? Are you sure that you want to do that?"

"Yeah! With the faker trapped in that box over there, killing him will be easy!"

"Oh, I wouldn't try that, King of Heroes..." Merlin said.

"Hmph! How so?" Archer Gilgamesh asked arrogantly.

"Well-" Merlin tried to explain but was cut off.

In an instant, Irisviel used her magecraft, created a giant hand of mana, and slammed Gilgamesh into the ground, restraining him.

"What the?! Hey, release me you mongrel!" Gilgamesh angrily yelled.

"I'm sorry, but after hearing you saying that you want to kill my son, I can't let you do anything right now," Irisviel said in a calm, yet angry voice.

"Ha! Do you think that this will stop me?!"

"Hm? This? Oh no, this isn't going to stop you. It's only going to restrict you for your punishment."

"Punishment? What punishment?"

"Well, go look and see."

Gilgamesh then turned to see what was Irisviel talking about. As so, he saw Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi looking at him with eyes of murderous intent.

And apparently, they all have their noble phantasms ready, preparing to unleash them on Gilgamesh.

"Everyone...truce?" Arturia and her counterparts muttered in anger.

"Truce," everyone else replied in agreement as they all planned to one thing.

Making Gilgamesh regret saying those words.

"Hey, hey, wait! How dare all of you-" Gilgamesh tried to say but was cut off from everyone as they unleashed their noble phantasms at Archer Gilgamesh.

"EXCALIBUR!" Arturia yelled.

"EXCALIBUR MORGAN!" Arturia Alter and Santa Arturia Alter yelled.

"CALIBURN!" Arturia Lily yelled.

"RHONGOMYNIAD!" Lancer Arturia, Lancer Arturia Alter, and Ruler Arturia yelled.

"EXCALIBUR VIVIAN!" Archer Arturia yelled.

"HEARTBREAK MORGAN!" Rider Arturia Alter yelled.

"X-CALIBUR!" Mysterious Heroine X yelled.

"CROSS-CALIBUR!" Mysterious Heroine X Alter yelled.

"TWINMYNIAD DISASTER!" Mysterious Heroine XX yelled.

"AN GAL TA KIGAL SHE!" Ishtar yelled.

"AN GAL TA-SEVEN COLORS!" Rider Ishtar yelled.

"KUR KIGAL IRKALLA!" Ereshkigal yelled.

"TRISHULA SHAKTI!" Parvati yelled.

"KAMA SAMMOHANA! SAMASARA KAMA!" Kama yelled.

"CURSED CUPID CLEANSER!" BB yelled.

"BRYNHILDR ROMANTIA!" Passionlip yelled.

"SARASVATI MELTOUT!" Meltlilith yelled.

"AIRAVATA KING SIZE!" Kingprotea yelled.

"QUINTETT FEUER!" Illya yelled.

"KAKUYOKU SAN-REN!" Kuro yelled.

"OPUTATESHIKE OKIMUNPE!" Sitonai yelled.

"WISH UPON A STAR!" Miyu yelled.

"CUSTOS MORUM!" Astraea yelled.

"LAUS SAINT CLAUDIUS!" Nero yelled.

"LAUDA LENTUM DOMUS ILLUSTRIUS!" Caster Nero yelled.

"FAX CAELESTIS!" Bride Nero yelled.

"LUMINOSITE ETERNELLE!" Jeanne D'Arc yelled.

"LE GRONDEMENT DE LA HAINE!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter yelled.

"LA CRACE FILLE NOEL!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily yelled.

"MUMYOU SANDAN-ZUKI!" Okita yelled.

"ZEKKEN! MUKYUU SANDAN!" Okita Alter yelled.

"RIKUDOU GORIN-KURIKARA TENSHOU!" Musashi yelled.

Realizing the situation he was in, Merlin then quickly grabbed both Irisviel and the captive Shirou. "Well, time to leave!"

And then he teleported to a safe place, leaving Archer Gilgamesh to his fate.

"DAMN YOU!" he yelled angrily.

And Archer Gilgamesh was buried under the lights of the noble phantasms.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Phew. That was close," Merlin said as he teleported himself, Irisviel and Shirou somewhere safe, far away from the beach.

"Yeah. It was sure lucky of us that we didn't get caught in the blast radius," Irisviel replied.

"You can say that again."

"Um...is the battle over?" Shirou asked.

"Good thing to ask. Merlin, is the one-sided slaughter is over?"

"Well, looks like it's completely silent now. I don't see any explosions either."

"Great. Let's go back then," Irisviel said.

Soon, Merlin teleported himself, Irisviel, and Shirou back to where they were before. As they did, what they saw completely shocked them.

The entire stage was ruined, blown to bits. Not only that, but a portion of the beach was blown off as well. As for everyone, there were all passed out, lying on the ground.

"Wow...I did not expect this much destruction..." Merlin muttered in awe.

"Yeah. But you know what they say, love is always a hurricane," Irisviel replied.

"You can say that again. Anyways, do we have a winner here?"

Irisviel let out a sigh. "Well...looks like everyone is knocked out, so that means the Holy Shirou War has ended in a tie."

"I see. Well that was a disappointment."

"Um...I don't want to interrupt the conversation you two are having...but can you let me out of the box now?"

"Hm? Oh yeah," Merlin replied. Merlin then chanted a spell that made the box disappeared, freeing Shirou.

"Thank you," Shirou said.

"Your welcome. Now then...what are we going to do here...?" Merlin said as he, Shirou, and Irisviel looked at the scenery in front of them.

"Well...we're going to have to clean up here, obviously," Irisviel replied.

Shirou sighed. This was going to be a long day cleaning up a giant mess...

And that's how the Holy Shirou War ended...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

"You know, this year's vacation was pretty good," Ritsuka said as they arrived back in Chaldea.

"You can say that again senpai," Mashu replied. "Well, back to the old routine again huh?"

"Yeah..."

As Ritsuka and Mashu continued walking together in Chaldea, they came across a sight that they haven't even seen before.

It was Archer Gilgamesh...with a tan. And he was not happy.

Because of the mood he was radiating, Ritsuka and Mashu steered clear from him...along with any other servant that came across him.


	41. Special Singularity

"Eh? Is this true Da Vinci?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yes Ritsuka. From what we're seeing right now, a new singularity has just appeared out of nowhere," Da Vinci replied as she showed Ritsuka and Mashu the new singularity on the screen.

"When did this appear Da Vinci?" Mashu asked.

"Well...here's the thing. It just showed up today. And suddenly too."

"Is that so? Do you have any information about this new singularity?" Ritsuka asked.

"At the moment, we only have a few bits about it. All we know is that the setting takes place in the modern world and it is currently overrun by unknown enemies that we don't know. Which is why I have a mission for both you and Mashu. I want you two to go into the singularity and see what the situation is going on. Once you two finish your scouting of the area, return to a layline and you'll receive some help later."

"Got it. Are you ready Mashu?" Ritsuka said to Mashu.

"I'm ready senpai," Mashu replied.

"Great! Now, all that's left is for you two to stand on the alter now to rayshift both of you to the location itself," Da Vinci said. Ritsuka and Mashu then followed Da Vinci's orders and went up to the altar. "Okay. rayshifiting in three...two...one!"

In an instant, the alter started to glow around Ritsuka and Mashu. Within a few seconds, Ritsuka and Mashu then disappeared from Chaldea.

"Well, good luck you two," Da Vinci thought.

Ritsuka opened his eyes to see where Da Vinci rayshifted him and Mashu at. He let out a sigh as this time, the rayshifting did not sent him in the air unlike the last time and multiple times that have before. "Well, this time we landed on the ground safely. Thank Shirou for fixing the alter to make the summoning less painful and doesn't involve free-falling..."

"Senpai. Where should we go?" Mashu asked as they checked their surroundings. Right now, they were in a forest of sort.

"For now, let's get out of the forest and see if there's any civilization out there," Ritsuka replied.

Mashu nodded in reply and followed where Ritsuka was going in the forest. Eventually, Ritsuka and Mashu finally got out of the forest and when they did, they saw a city in front of them. While the city was normal, there was a huge building over there that made it stand out. "Okay, there's a city over there, so we can go over there to see if there's any information that we can use to find out what happened here," Ritsuka thought.

However, when they arrived at the city, what they saw in them shocked them.

Because inside the city was multiple bean plushies that were moving around the area.

"Uh senpai. Are you seeing what I am seeing?" Mashu asked.

"Unless if you're seeing something other than moving bean plushies in the air, then yes," Ritsuka replied as he was in shock over what he was seeing.

However, their conversation was cut short when one of the bean plushies went for Ritsuka. "Senpai!" Mashu exclaimed as she went in front of Ritsuka, activating her shield. The bean plushie flew back upon hitting the shield, falling to the ground. Mashu then lowered her shield to see what the attacker looked like.

As she did, both Ritsuka and Mashu were surprised upon seeing a better look at what the bean plushie looked like.

Because the bean plushie looked a lot like Shirou. It had his facial features, although a bit simplified and it was wearing his old high school uniform as an outfit.

"Senpai! This bean plushie is?!" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. This bean plushie definitely looks a lot like Shirou," Ritsuka replied as he examined it a lot closer. "The eyes, the hair, heck, it even has the uniform he wore during his time when he was alive."

"Yeah. What should we do?"

"Well, let's head back for a bit and set up out location. Now that we made contact here with one of them, it shouldn't be long before the others come after us."

"Good idea. We should also tell Da Vinci of our situation here."

Ritsuka and Mashu then went back to the forest they were before and set up camp there. As they did, Ritsuka then contacted Da Vinci. "Da Vinci? It's me," he said on the communicator on his watch.

"Hey Ritsuka! Did you find the source of the singularity?" Da Vinci asked.

"Yeah. And you're not going to believe what we found..." he muttered.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Da Vinci was in the summoning room, waiting for the people she called to arrive. Eventually, the people she called over came into the room.

"Ah, good that all of you can come here Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter," Da Vinci said.

"Yeah. Anyways, why did you call of us here Da Vinci?" EMIYA asked.

"Yeah. What seems to be the problem?" Shirou asked.

"Well...remember that new singularity that popped up earlier?"

"Yeah. What about it?" EMIYA Alter asked.

"Well...just take a look at what I'm about to show you."

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were confused with what Da Vinci was saying. However, when she showed the image on the screen, they were all surprised at what she had shown them.

It was an image of the multiple Shirou bean plushies that Ritsuka and Mashu encountered.

"Uh Da Vinci...a-are those..." Shirou muttered in shock upon seeing the bean plushies.

"Yes Shirou. These are bean plushies of you occupying the city Ritsuka and Mashu were in," Da Vinci replied.

For a moment, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were silent upon hearing Da Vinci's words. Then EMIYA decided to speak out.

"What the heck?! Why are there a bunch of bean plushies of my younger self occupying a city?! This doesn't even make sense! And plus, how is it that they're moving in the first place?!" EMIYA yelled.

"That, I do not know. However, from what Ritsuka and Mashu told me earlier, this may be the cause of all of those bean plushies," Da Vinci replied as she brought out another image. This time, it was the image of the giant building that was shown in the city.

"Is that building the cause of all of those bean plushies?" EMIYA Alter asked Da Vinci.

"We can assume so. Anyways, we need you three to go to where Ritsuka and Mashu are and support them."

"Okay," Shirou said.

"Got it," EMIYA said.

"Yeah..." EMIYA Alter said.

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter then went on the summoning alter. As they did, Da Vinci then activated the teleportation device. "Okay. Rayshifting in three...two...one...now!"

And in an instant, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter rayshifted to where Ritsuka and Mashu were.

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter opened their eyes as they landed at the location where Ritsuka and Mashu were setting camp up. "Master?" Shirou said.

"Hm? Oh, hey Shirou! EMIYA! EMIYA Alter! I take it that Da Vinci sent all of you here?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah," EMIYA replied.

"Great. Hopefully this time there won't be any problems this time..."

"Hm? Problems? What do you mean by that?" EMIYA Alter asked.

"Well...it's kind of a long story Shirou-san, EMIYA-san, EMIYA Alter-san," Mashu said as she was readying herself for battle.

"What happened earlier?"

"What? Da Vinci didn't tell you?" Ritsuka asked. Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter shook their heads in response. "Well...guess I'll have to explain it then. You see, before you even arrived here or rather, Da Vinci called you here, Da Vinci called Arturia and her counterparts to help me and Mashu fix the singularity here. And do you want to know what happened?"

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter looked at Ritsuka curiously.

"Upon seeing images of the bean plushies of Shirou, they immediately fainted."

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter's eyes widen upon hearing that. "No way," they said in unison.

"Yeah. And that's not the end of it."

"You mean-" Shirou said but was cut off by Ritsuka.

"Yes. Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi came nearby, saw the images, and then passed out too," Ritsuka replied with a sigh.

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA were quiet upon hearing the information directly from Ritsuka's mouth. "You okay guys?" he asked.

"Y-Yeah..." Shirou said.

"Yeah master..." EMIYA said.

"Yeah. Nothing to worry about..." EMIYA Alter said.

"I see. Anyways, we're ready here, so let's go."

Soon Ritsuka, Mashu, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter went into the city infested with Shirou bean plushies. As they did, the group went up to fight against the bean plushies and Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter had various thoughts upon fighting them.

After all, the enemy they have to fight against are bean plushies of Shirou that can move around.

"Okay, I have never seen an enemy like this before. First of all, who actually created bean plushies of me?! And how are they moving?! I swear, I can smell magic coming from them," Shirou thought.

"You have got to be kidding me! I have faced many enemies before, but this?! This is something that I have never seen and fought before! And who in the right mind would create something like this?!" EMIYA thought.

"What the heck. This is not what I was expecting to fight against today. Monsters and demons are one thing, but bean plushies of my younger self? That's something you don't see every day. Just who is the idiot that created something like this?" EMIYA Alter thought.

"This many bean plushies of Shirou-san...who created them? And why?" Mashu thought.

"Jeez, just what kind of singularity is this?! This is nothing like the ones from before! Well to be fair, the enemies that I usually fight are not this cute...and fluffy..." Ritsuka thought.

Eventually, Ritsuka, Mashu, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were done fighting with the Shirou bean plushies in the area.

"All right then. Where shall we go master?" Shirou asked.

"Isn't it obvious? We're going to storm into that giant building over there," Ritsuka replied as he pointed at the giant building in the distance.

"That building? You mean the source for all of the bean plushies comes from there?" EMIYA asked.

"I think so. Earlier, I felt a slight surge of magic coming from that building. I'm sure that the bean plushies came from that building," Mashu replied.

"Great. All we need to do is to destroy that building and everything will return to normal," EMIYA Alter said.

"Yeah. Anyways, let's go!" Ritsuka exclaimed.

Soon, Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu eventually arrived at the building. As they did, Shirou looked at the title of the building.

It said Elzretch Industries.

Shirou was confused upon looking at the title of the building. "Elzretch Industries? I never heard of this company before. Pretty sure this is the reason behind the bean plushies of me. Although the name Elzretch...why does that sound familiar?" he thought

"Shirou?" Ritsuka said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Ah, it's nothing. Anyways, let's head in," Shirou replied.

Soon, Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu headed into the building. As they did, they were ambushed with more bean plushies. "Incoming!" Shirou yelled. In an instant, Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter brought out Kanshou and Bakuya, slashing (shooting in EMIYA Alter's case) any bean plushie that was coming towards Ritsuka and Mashu.

As they continued fighting inside the building, Shirou picked up a faint trace of magic. "Ritsuka! I'm feeling some magic below us! It's probably where the bean plushies are being created!"

"You think so?"

"Yeah!"

"Great! Let's hurry then!"

Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu then quickly beaten all of the bean plushies in the room they were in and then went downstairs to see what was creating the bean plushies. As they did, what they saw completely surprised them, especially Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter.

It was a giant Shirou bean plushie, and it was wearing a crown.

"Oh my..." Mashu said.

"Oh you got to be kidding me..." Shirou muttered.

"What...the heck...is that?!" EMIYA yelled.

"No...it can't be...!" EMIYA Alter said.

"Well...judging by what we're looking at right now...what's right in front of us right now is a giant-sized bean plushie of Shirou...wearing a crown," Ritsuka said.

Everyone was dumbfounded upon what Ritsuka said. However, the silence was shattered when the giant Shirou bean plushie started projecting plastic swords and started throwing at them, making Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu dodge in surprise.

"What the heck?! This plushie can use projection?!" they all thought in unison.

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter landed in one corner of the room while Ritsuka and Mashu landed in another corner. "Okay, so apparently, that giant bean plushie can use projection," Shirou said.

"Isn't that obvious?! You saw what he did!" EMIYA snarked at Shirou for stating the obvious.

"Yeah. Although it can only project plastic swords, so that's a relief," EMIYA Alter said.

"Yeah. Still, we can't let our guard down," Mashu said.

"Mashu's right. Everyone! Attack that giant plushie!" Ritsuka said.

Soon, everyone in the room started attacking the giant Shirou bean plushie. However, the giant bean plushie soon started projecting more plastic swords and started throwing at them. Mashu went in front of Ritsuka and brought out her shield to protect him from the thrown plastic swords. Meanwhile, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were deflecting the plastic swords.

"You know, this is something I did not expect to see here," Shirou suddenly said.

"You're telling me. This feels like a dream, if I can even dream that is," EMIYA replied.

"Me neither. Anyways, let's stop chatting and start killing that giant plushie!" EMIYA Alter said.

At that moment, Shirou and EMIYA agreed with what EMIYA Alter said and began their counterattack. They then lunged forward towards the giant plushie. Shirou and EMIYA started projecting multiple projections of Kanshou and Bakuya and started to throw them at the giant plushie while EMIYA Alter used his version of Kanshou and Bakuya to shoot at the giant plushie.

The projections of Shirou and EMIYA's Kanshou and Bakuya alongside the gunshots EMIYA Alter did hit the giant plushie, weakening it greatly.

It was then that Shirou and EMIYA brought out their black bows along with a twisted black sword, one for each. They then propped the sword onto their bows and assumed in a shooting pose. Meanwhile EMIYA Alter began charging his guns.

"Go into the red plains, Hrunting!" Shirou and EMIYA yelled in unison as they shot the swords at the giant plushie while EMIYA Alter fire a charged shot. As the twin Hruntings and the charged shot flew in the air, they hit the giant Shirou plushie.

"Did that do it?" Mashu asked.

"I hope so," Ritsuka replied.

To their relief, the giant plushie of Shirou stopped moving, allowing everyone to release a sigh of relief. However, in an act of surprise, the plushie then exploded in a cartoon-like way, releasing a bunch of confetti in the room they were in.

Everyone was surprised to see something like this happen.

"D-Did that just happen?" Shirou asked in disbelief.

"Yeah. That plushie just blew up in the most ridiculous way possible," EMIYA said.

"Wow. Did not expect that to happen," EMIYA Alter said.

"You can say that again. That explosion looked like the ones from cartoons..." Mashu said. "And it looked so cute too..."

"Yeah. Anyways, it looks like there are no more Shirou bean plushies coming out right now, so it's safe to guess that we have completed this singularity," Ritsuka said.

"Seems like it. Shall we head back, master?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah."

Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu then left the building and headed back to where Ritsuka and Mashu set up their location to teleport back to Chaldea. During the walk back, Shirou had one thought on his mind.

_"Elzretch Industries...why does the name Elzretch sound so familiar? It rings a bell, although I don't know how or why..."_

_(Meanwhile, in the Kaleidoscope...) ___

____

"Hahahahahahahaha! I knew this was going to be a hilarious show!" Zelretch said with laughter as he watched the events of the singularity from a tv. "Seriously, who would have ever known that the Shirou bean plushie I created and forgot many years ago would end up creating a singularity like this?! And using my name as an anagram for a company?! That's rich!"

Zelretch then grabbed a bag of chips nearby and started to eat them as he continued to watch the show. "Now then...what will young Emiya Shirou show me next when he gets back to Chaldea...especially since he's so fun to mess with..." he thought.


	42. The Girl from the Moon

Ritsuka was in Chaldea's summoning room. In front of him was the summoning altar that was used previously to summon servants from the throne of heroes. Right now, he was placing the saint quartz that he saved up recently and was hoping to summon a servant today.

"Senpai?" Mashu said from the entrance of the summoning room.

"Hm? Oh, hey Mashu," Ritsuka said with a smile on his face.

"Are you summoning more servants today?" Mashu asked.

"Hopefully so."

"I see..." Mashu then went up to where Ritsuka was and looked at the summoning alter with memories in her head. "The summoning alter..."

"Hm? What about it Mashu?" Ritsuka asked, noticing her look at the summoning alter.

"Well, we made a lot of memories here huh? The number of servants we summomed...all of those times..."

"Yeah...I still remember them...the way how they were summoned. However, the one summoning that possibly shocked me the most was the day when we summoned Shirou here."

"Oh yeah...I remember that day...especially what happened afterwards."

"Yeah. To this day, my mind is still dumbfounded over the fact that many of the servants here knew Shirou," Ritsuka said with a laugh. "And to add effect, many people now knew him because of his actions throughout of Chaldea."

"That too," Mashu said with a chuckle.

Ritsuka and Mashu then stopped talking and continued looking at the summoning alter in reminisce. As they did, memories of their past in Chaldea flew through them.

Eventually, Ritsuka and Mashu stopped looking at the summoning alter and then began to do their business. "Well, time to summon a servant," Ritsuka said as he activated the alter. As he did, alter lit up, temporarily blinding the two from how bright the light was. The saint quartz then disappeared, then formed into multiple blue orbs. Then the blue orbs started to connect with each other and turned into a ring of blue sparks swirling around. Then the ring split into three and continued to swirl around.

As the light faded, it revealed a gold card showing a robed old man wearing a hood with a long beard holding a staff while carrying a book at the same time. The card then disappeared as a girl appeared. The girl looked like she was in her high school years. She was wearing a dark navy sailor school uniform with a red scarf, a pleated skirt, black knee socks, and brown shoes. She had brown hair and brown eyes.

"Um...this is my first time saying this...servant caster...Hakuno Kishinami...are you my master?" Hakuno said quietly.

For a moment, Ritsuka and Mashu were surprised with the servant at first. Then they greeted themselves.

"Y-Yes. I am your master. My name is Fujimaru Ritsuka. Over here is Mashu Kirelight."

"N-Nice to meet you Hakuno-san," Mashu said with a bow.

"Nice to meet you too Mashu-san," Hakuno replied with a bow of her own. "Anyways, where am I?"

"You are in Chaldea," Ritsuka said.

"Chaldea? What is that?"

"Chaldea is an organization designed to protect humanity. What we do is that we summon servants using the summoning alter and fix singularities with them."

"I see. Are we at its headquarters?"

"Yes. In Antarctica."

Hakuno's eyes widen upon hearing Ritsuka's explanation. "Antarctica?"

"Yeah. Shocked?"

"Well...not quite. Considering that something similar like this is on the moon where I come from," Hakuno stated.

This time, it was Ritsuka and Mashu's turn to be surprised. "The moon?! There was something like this on the moon where you came from?!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Yeah."

"Wow..." Ritsuka said. "Anyways, welcome to Chaldea Hakuno. I hope we get along with each other," Ritsuka said as he held out his hand for a handshake.

Hakuno then responded to the handshake by shaking it as well. "Yeah. I hope so too."

It was then that a certain servant decided to drop in. "Eh? Master? Mashu?"

Ritsuka and Mashu then turned to the source of the voice. It was Emiya Shirou, carrying a box.

"Eh? Shirou-san? What are you doing here?"

"Me? Well, Da Vinci gave me an errand to run. She told me to find you and give you this box. Inside it are papers for you sign for something."

Ritsuka moaned upon hearing Shirou's explanation. "Really?"

"Yeah. Anyways, is that a new servant over there?" Shirou asked as he was carrying the box.

"Yeah. Her name is Hakuno. Please welcome her nicely."

"I will." Shirou then placed the box down in a corner. He then went up to her and gave her a bow. "My name is Emiya Shirou. Pleased to meet you Hakuno."

Hakuno then took a bow too. "It's nice to meet you to Shirou. My name is Hakuno Kishinami. I hope we get along Shirou."

"Yeah. Me too."

Both of them lifted their heads up after they were done with their introductions. It was then that Ritsuka gave Shirou a task.

"Um Shirou. I'm sorry for imposing work on you already, but can you give Hakuno a tour of Chaldea so that she doesn't get lost here?"

"Sure. I don't mind."

"Great. You and Hakuno can leave now. Me and Mashu will be fine here."

"Okay. Come on Hakuno, let's go."

"Y-Yes."

And then Shirou and Hakuno left the summoning room, leaving Ritsuka and Mashu alone.

"Will Shirou be fine giving Hakuno a tour of Chaldea senpai?" Mashu asked.

"He'll be fine. He's just giving her a tour. Anyways Mashu, can you help me with the papers?"

"Y-Yes!"

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou and Hakuno are walking the Chaldea's hallway, where Shirou was showing Hakuno the rooms Chaldea has to offer. "And over there is one of the recreational rooms in which servants can take a break over there and relax after doing missions with master," he said.

"I see. And what's that room over there?" Hakuno asked as she was pointing to that room.

"Hm? Ah, over there is the training room in which servants can go over there to hone their skills and become stronger."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

It was then that a servant came out of the training room. That servant was Lancer Cu, who just finished his daily training. As he walked out of the room, he noticed Shirou and Hakuno together, making him smirk.

"Hey kid! Who's the girl with you? A new servant?"

"Yeah. She just arrived today. Her name is Hakuno Kishinami."

"I see. Welcome to Chaldea young miss. You'll find it interesting here," Lancer Cu said with a toothy grin. "Anyways, hey kid! Thanks for lending a copy of Gae Bolg to my caster counterpart. He looked so happy when he was using it. I swear, you should have seen his face when he was using it."

"Was he really that happy?" Shirou asked.

"You have no idea. Anyways, see you later!" Lancer Cu said as he left.

"Who was that?" Hakuno asked.

"Cu Chulainn, one of the many servants of Chaldea," Shirou replied.

"Is he a friend of yours?"

Shirou gave Hakuno's question a long thought and said, "You can say that. Anyways, shall we move on?"

"Yes."

Shirou and Hakuno then continued to walk through the main hallway of Chaldea where Shirou continued showing Hakuno the rooms of Chaldea. As they continued walking, some of the servants recognized Shirou and came up to him, congratulating him or thanking him for his work in Chaldea. During the walk, Hakuno was amazed with the amount of praise Shirou was receiving.

"Wow, you seem to be quite popular here Shirou. And nice too," Hakuno said.

"Well it's because I try to help others if I can. And that's only half of it."

"How so?"

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Before I became a servant, I was a master in the Fuyuki Holy Grail War. That's how most of the servants knew who I am."

Hakuno was surprised hearing this from Shirou. "Really? You were a master of a holy grail war as well?"

Shirou was now surprised as well. "You too?"

"Yeah. Although mine took place in the Moon Cell."

"Moon Cell? What is that?"

"It's a supercomputer on the moon."

Shirou was stunned to hear that. "You got to be kidding me..."

"Surprised?"

"Yeah. Back when I was alive, technology didn't advance to that point, so hearing that in your world, there is a supercomputer on the moon, shocked me a bit."

"I see. Sorry if you had to hear that," Hakuno apologized.

"Nah, it's okay. I'm used to hearing crazy stuff at point..." Shirou said with a chuckle in his voice. "Anyways, let's continue the tour, shall we?"

"Yes."

As the tour continued, Hakuno had some thoughts about Shirou. "Emiya Shirou...he seems to be a nice guy considering that every servant we came across seems to be on friendly terms with him. Although there's one thing that is bothering my mind; is he related to nameless in one way or another?" she thought.

As they continued walking, they encountered one servant that shocked Hakuno.

EMIYA.

"Hey. Did you give master the box yet? EMIYA asked.

"Yeah," Shirou replied.

"Good. By the way, who's the girl?"

"She's a new servant that just joined. Her name is Hakuno Kishinami."

"I see. Welcome to Chaldea, Hakuno."

"Y-Yeah. Hope we get along with each other."

"Me too. Anyways, I got to go now. Bye," EMIYA said as he left.

"Bye."

As EMIYA disappeared in the distance, Hakuno then asked Shirou a question.

"Was that nameless? Although he seems different."

Shirou was confused. "Nameless? Who's that?"

"One of my servants. Let me show you something." Hakuno then took out a picture of Nameless. As Shirou looked at the picture, he was shocked.

_"What?! That's Nameless?! But he looks a lot like Archer!"_

"Um...Shirou?" Hakuno said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Well Hakuno...that's not the servant you were talking about."

Hakuno was confused. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well...the person that was in front of you was my future counterpart, EMIYA."

"Is that so? But how come he looks a lot like him?"

"Well...this is probably my guess, but nameless is probably a version of EMIYA from your world where things happened differently. I know because I asked him about his life a while ago, and he didn't mention the Moon Cell."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Shirou then continued giving Hakuno the tour. As the tour continued, Hakuno had a thought going through her head. "So that's why Shirou seemed familiar to Nameless...well, sort of. He's the younger version of him from another world..."

"Wow. There was another version of Archer in her world. And he went by nameless..." Shirou thought.

As the tour continued, Shirou and Hakuno decided to take a left turn in the hallway.

It was then that they came upon a certain group of servants.

Those servants were Saber Nero, Tamamo No Mae, BB, and Archer Gilgamesh. Nero, EMIYA, Tamamo, and BB looked at Shirou and Hakuno in shock while Gilgamesh had a grumpy look on his face.

"My praetor?"

"Goshujn-sama?"

"Senpai?"

Gilgamesh didn't say anything but remained shocked upon seeing Hakuno and a bit angry at Shirou. Meanwhile, Hakuno was the same as the other servants upon seeing them.

"Everyone?"

In an instant, Nero, Tamamo, and BB immediately lunged themselves at Hakuno and gave her a giant hug.

"WELCOME BACK!" they said in unison and happiness.

Hakuno let out a small smile upon receiving a hug and said, "Yeah. I'm back. It's nice to see all of you again."

"My praetor...what took you so long..." Nero said.

"I've been counting the days...goshujin-sama..." Tamamo said.

"It's not nice to keep senpai waiting you know..." BB said.

Soon Archer Gilgamesh soon came up to Hakuno.

"Ha. I knew that we would meet again," Archer Gilgamesh said with pride in his voice. "Although why did you have to meet with the faker..." he mumbled at the last part.

Meanwhile, Shirou looked at the scene with curiosity. "Um...Hakuno, do you know all of these servants?"

"Hm? Ah yes, they're my servants during my time in the Moon Cell," Hakuno replied.

"I see...wait, all four of them?"

"No. Only Nero, Tamamo, and Gilgamesh. BB was the one who created the Moon Cell Holy Grail War."

Shirou was shocked upon hearing the information Hakuno gave him. "Really?! Hakuno was the master of Nero, Tamamo, and Gilgamesh?! Jeez, just what kind of master was she?!" he thought.

As Nero, Tamamo, and Gilgamesh were around Hakuno, Nero then noticed that Shirou was in the corner. "Ah! My praetor, it seems you have met Emiya Shirou already! Umu!"

"You know Emiya Shirou, Nero?"

"Umu! He is also my praetor! He is well skilled I must say, especially in the ways of cooking!" she said in an excited tone.

"Hey! He's my senpai! You can't have him Nero! He's mine!" BB exclaimed.

Hakuno was surprised upon hearing both Nero and BB's explanations/praise about Emiya Shirou. "Emiya Shirou is both Nero's praetor and BB's senpai? Jeez, just what did Emiya Shirou do to get attention from them, especially BB..."

Nero, Tamamo, and BB let go of Hakuno from their hug, giving her some space.

"So, what your relationships with Emiya Shirou?" Hakuno asked EMIYA, Tamamo, and Gilgamesh.

Gilgamesh scowled. "He's someone I don't want to admit or accept...and I hate him...so much!" he muttered in anger.

"He's a fellow Japanese servant who I respect in both cooking and fighting!" Tamamo said in excitement. "Anyways, what are you doing here?"

"Me? I've been summoned here a servant for Chaldea."

"Hah! What class are you?" Gilgamesh asked.

"Caster."

"Is that so? That's a class that seems fitting for you, since you were able to control four servants at once," Gilgamesh gloated.

EMIYA let out a sigh. "By the way, what were you doing with my younger self?"

"Hm? Oh, he was giving me a tour of Chaldea up until now. Is there a problem with that?"

"Well no. I'm just wondering."

"I see. Anyways, Shirou, do you mind if I spend some time with my former servants?" Hakuno asked Shirou.

"Sure. I don't mind," Shirou replied.

Nero let out a smile. "As expected from my praetor! He shows kindness to everyone!" she exclaimed happily.

"Hey! He's my senpai you know!"

Hakuno sighed. "Anyways, you can carry on Shirou. Till we meet again."

"Yeah. Bye Hakuno," Shirou said with a smile.

Hakuno smiled back. "Bye Shirou."

Shirou then left, leaving Hakuno to Nero, EMIYA, Tamamo, BB, and Gilgamesh. As Shirou disappeared in the distance, BB then asked Hakuno something.

"Well? What do you think of senpai?" BB asked.

Hakuno then gave a thought to her question and said, "He's a nice guy. I can see how people can respect him. Wish I can talk to him a bit longer and learn more about him..."

"I know right?! Oh, just wait when I put you and him in a room with me...oh the many possibilities!" BB exclaimed excitedly.

Hakuno then chopped BB's head. "BB, behave," she said with a sigh. "Speaking of which, why was Gilgamesh glaring at Shirou this whole time?"

Gilgamesh turned his head to the other way, not wanting to answer that question. However, that was when BB decided to do something crazy.

"Let me tell you something senpai..." BB then whispered to Hakuno. After a few seconds, Hakuno was shocked.

"Ehhhh?! The reason why Gilgamesh was glaring at Shirou this whole time was because he lost to him?! And his most precious treasure was beaten as well by his noble phantasm?!" Hakuno exclaimed in surprise.

Gilgamesh then turned to BB in anger. "HOW DARE YOU!"

BB then let out a smug grin. "Hey, she wanted to know the answer, so I told her."

"WHY YOU!"

Then Gilgamesh and BB started to fight against each other. As they were fighting each other, Hakuno let out a sigh as Tamamo watched the fight. "Some things will never change..."

It was then that Nero asked Hakuno a question.

"Hey my praetor."

"What?"

"Do you wish to claim Emiya Shirou?" Nero asked mischievously.

Hakuno blushed. "W-What?!"

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

Shirou was walking in the hallway of Chaldea, minding his own business. As he did, he then noticed a picture on the ground.

"A picture? What is it doing here? Did someone drop it?" Shirou thought before he proceeded to pick it up. However, when he saw the picture, he was shocked.

Because the picture showed Nameless wearing a biker jacket...without any shirt on.

_"What the heck?!"_


	43. A Unknown Stalker

Shirou suddenly felt a chill going through his body, like if someone was watching him.

_"What the?! What was that feeling in my body just now?! It felt like something or someone is watching me...just who or what is it?"_

Shirou turned around to see if there was something or someone was tailing him. To his relief, there was no one behind him. "Well, there's nothing behind me...am I getting crazy? Or is it my imagination?" Shirou then dismissed his thoughts and continued walking.

<>Little did Shirou know that he was wrong...because in the distance of the hallway, there was someone falling him.

And that someone is Kiara Sessyoin, who is also known as Beast III/R.

_"So that is Emiya Shirou huh? The younger counterpart to the counter guardian I have corrupted many years ago..."_

_(A few hours ago...)_

Kiara Sessyoin was walking in one of Chaldea's hallways, minding her own business. As she was walking, she overheard something that interested her.

"Hey EMIYA?" Ritsuka asked EMIYA.

"Hm? What is it master?" EMIYA replied.

"Well...there's one question that's been on my mind for quite a while now. You see, how is it that you and Shirou are the same person, but you look different from him?"

EMIYA gave Ritsuka's question a long thought and said, "Well, it's because my younger self didn't make the same mistake me and my altered counterpart did."

"Really? And what mistake was that?"

"Overusing projection."

"Is that the reason why you and your altered counterpart have tanned skin, white hair, and grey eyes while Shirou has red hair, untanned skin, and golden-brown eyes?"

"Yeah."

"I see..."

As Kiara overheard the conversation between Ritsuka and EMIYA, she was immediately interested in Emiya Shirou, the younger version of EMIYA Alter, who she had corrupted a long time ago.

_"Emiya Shirou...so he's the younger version of the counter guardian I corrupted a long time ago...he sounds interesting to play with. Wonder what I shall do to him...should I break him and make him experience pleasure? Or should I brainwash him? Oh the many possibilities I want to do to him..."_

And just like that, Kiara had one new goal in mind.

Meeting Emiya Shirou.

_(Back to the present...)_

Kiara continued following Shirou in the distance, her mind set on meeting him and enacting her plans on what to do with him. As she continued to follow him, she had to hide in a corner again as Shirou turned around again to see if there was someone following him. "Tch. Damn, he's always on check with something..."

Soon, Shirou left. As so, Kiara peaked out of the corner to see if he was gone, which he was. Kiara let out a sigh. "Soon Emiya Shirou. Soon you will meet me...and you cannot escape from me and my embrace..."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kiara was in the corner, monitoring her target as he was sitting alone in the cafeteria, eating his food. "Great. He's alone in the cafeteria. Perfect to make a move on him."

Kiara then proceeded to move out of her hiding spot and went to where Shirou was. However, before she could even to do so, Arturia and her counterparts just arrived and then went into the cafeteria.

"Shirou!" Arturia and her counterparts yelled, grabbing his attention.

"Hm? Oh, hey Arturia. What are all of you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious? We're here to have lunch with you," Arturia Alter said.

"Exactly! We don't want you to have lunch all by yourself you know!" Arturia Lily said.

"That's right. After all, you are our queen," Lancer Arturia said.

"And what kind of king we would be if we let our queen eat alone?" Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Exactly. We don't want to leave you alone," Ruler Arturia said.

"And plus, it's already lunch time right now," Archer Arturia said.

"Yes. And we're quite hungry now Shirou," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"She's right. We want some of your cooking again," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Yeah. I want some of your fried rice again..." Mysterious Heroine X said.

"And your sweets too..." Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Yeah. So, I hope that you don't mind all of us eating here with you," Mysterious Heroine XX said with a smile.

"Sure. I don't mind," Shirou replied.

"Great!" Arturia and her counterparts said in happiness as they sat down next to Shirou. As they did, they then ate with Shirou while having conversations with him along with themselves as well.

Meanwhile, Kiara was watching the scene in temptation of crashing the scene but was waiting for Shirou to be alone to have a better chance of corrupting him.

However, as time passed, Shirou was still with eating and chatting with Arturia and her counterparts, and it was annoying her.

"Come on already! Move along you girls!" Kiara thought angrily. Eventually, Arturia and her counterparts were done with their meals. Soon, they then left Shirou. "Good now I can-" she thought but was interrupted with what happened next.

Because in an instant, a bunch of other servants came into the cafeteria, prompting Shirou to get back to the kitchen.

Kiara groaned at what just happened. Guess she'll have to wait another day...

Little did she know that it was not going to be easy...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Like yesterday, Shirou was walking down the hallway, minding his own business. However, unlike yesterday, he didn't feel that anything or anyone following him. "Well, looks like nothing is following me today."

As Shirou continued walking, he came across a poster flyer that was on the wall.

The poster said this:

**Tired of constant stress in your body?  
Need a way to release all of it?  
Well then, come to Kiara's relaxing yoga classes, where she will help you get rid of the stress in your body!  
Location: Chaldea's recreational room #2  
Time: 12:00-1:00 pm.**

The poster itself showed Kiara in a sports bra, workout tights, and was doing some yoga poses.

_"Yoga huh? Well...this poster doesn't look too suspicious...and I could use some yoga. My body feels sore recently..."_

It was just then that three certain servants suddenly surprised him from behind, interrupting him from his thoughts.

"Emiya-kun!" three voices said in unison.

Shirou nearly jumped from hearing the voices and turned around to see who the voices were.

They were Ishtar, her Rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal.

"Wah! I-Ishtar? Ereshkigal?"

"Yup! It's me, Emiya-kun! And I need your help right now!" Ishtar, her Rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal said in unison.

Shirou then quickly calmed down from his earlier outburst and asked the three goddesses a question. "What is the problem?"

"Well...we need your help fixing a video game console..." Ereshkigal muttered in embarrassment.

"What happened?"

"Well...me, my Rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal were playing a game of some sort, and then suddenly, the game stopped for a moment," Ishtar said.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Anyways, can you help us?" Rider Ishtar asked.

Shirou gave the request a thought and said, "Sure."

Ishtar, her Rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal smiled upon hearing Shirou's answer. "Great! Now let's go and fix that game so we can continue!" Ishtar said. She then grabbed Shirou's arm and started dragging him to her room.

"Wah! Ishtar! Slow down!" Shirou yelled as he was dragged by Ishtar with Rider Ishtar and Ereshkigal following them.

Meanwhile, in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms, Kiara sighed as the person she was hoping for didn't come...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"This time, this time for sure I will surely capture him..." Kiara thought as she was in a corner looking Shirou who was working on fixing a broken appliance. However, before she could come up to him, Parvati suddenly showed up. "Damn it! Not again!"

"Senpai?" Parvati said, making Shirou stop for a moment.

"Hm? Oh, hey Parvati. What are you doing here?" Shirou asked.

"Well, Da Vinci told me to give you this box," Parvati said.

Shirou then grabbed the box. "Ah! The parts I needed to fix this has arrived. Thank you Parvati."

"No problem senpai. See you later then."

"Bye."

"Bye." Parvati then left, leaving Shirou alone with the broken contraption.

"All right, this is my chance!" Kiara thought. However, before she could even do so, Kama suddenly came by. "What?!"

"Shirou," Kama said.

"Hm? Oh, hey Kama. What are you doing here?" Shirou replied.

"Can I have some sweets now?"

Shirou let out a small sigh. "When I done fixing with this, I'll go into the kitchen to make some sweets later. For now, be patient, okay?"

"Okay..." Kama said.

Shirou smiled and gave Kama a head pat. "Great. Just wait now."

Kama blushed upon Shirou giving her the headpat. "A-Alright!" She then quickly left.

"All right. Now's my chance, unless if this happens a third time in which it shouldn't," Kiara thought as she planned to make her move. However, as if fate was tempted to save Shirou, BB and her sisters arrived. "Aw come on! Not this again!"

"Hi there senpai!" BB said.

"Hi Shirou," Passionlip said.

"Hey Shirou," Meltlilith said.

"Hi Shirou!" Kingprotea said.

"Hm?" Shirou said as he turned around to see BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, and Kinprotea together. "BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, Kingprotea? What are all of you doing here?"

BB smirked. "To thank you for earlier!"

"Yeah. Thank you for fixing the tv earlier," Passionlip said.

"Yeah. Now we can watch our shows easily," Meltlilith said.

"Yeah! Thank you Shirou!" Kingprotea said.

"No problem," Shirou replied.

"Anyways, bye Shirou! Come on everyone!" BB said as she quickly left. Soon BB's sisters said their goodbyes and left Shirou along.

Kiara let out a sigh as the distractions were gone. "Great. Now to enact my plan, and-"

"All right. Should be fixed. Now to give this to Da Vinci," Shirou said as he picked up the fixed item and soon left, leaving Kiara in dismay over what just happened.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking in the hallway, minding his own business. As he was walking, he came across a certain object that was on the ground.

"Hm? What is this?" Shirou thought as he picked up the object. The object itself was a pendant. The jewel that was in the middle was a diamond with gold engravings on the side and it was held by a gold chain. "A pendant? What's a pendant doing here on the ground? Did one of the servants here dropped here or something? Or maybe this is one of Da Vinci's experimental mystic codes?" he thought.

As Shirou continued examining it, in the corner of the hallway, Kiara was watching gleefully as Shirou picked up the object she wanted him to pick up.

"Yes! Shirou has picked up the pendant I created! All that's is left is for him to wear then pendent which should activate upon him wearing it around his neck, and soon, he will come to me."

As Shirou continued to look at the pendant, Kiara was watching carefully as she hoped for the moment Shirou started to wear it.

"Come on...come on..." Kiara thought.

However, her hopes were crushed as Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu suddenly came in.

"Onii-chan!" they exclaimed in unison as they all gave him a hug.

"Wah?! Illya?! Kuro?! Sitonai?! Miyu?!"

"Hey onii-chan! Miss us?" Illya said.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, what are all of you doing here?"

"What? Isn't it obvious that a little sister wants to see her big brother right now? Anwyays, what are you holding in your hand?" Kuro said.

"Hm? Oh this? Some pendant that was on the ground earlier," Shirou replied as he showed it to Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu. As they took a closer look at it, Sitonai and Miyu noticed something.

"Hey Miyu, are you feeling that?" Sitonai whispered to Miyu.

"Yeah. That pendant...it seems dangerous..." Miyu whispered back. "Illya, Kuro, what do you think of it?"

"That pendant? It smells like danger," Illya replied.

"Yeah. Even by looking at it, it irks me for some reason," Kuro said.

"I agree," Sitonai said.

"Me too," Miyu said.

As Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu were chatting among with each other, Shirou was confused with what was going on between them.

"Um...everyone...?" Shirou asked.

"Onii-chan, do you mind if you give the pendant to us for a while?" Illya asked.

"Well...okay, but-"

"Do it," Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said in unison and meanincly.

Not wanting to anger his little sisters, Shirou quickly gave them the pendant. "Here."

Illya instantly grabbed the pendant. "Good. You can move on now," she said.

"But-"

"Now," Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said.

In an instant, Shirou quickly left the hallway he was in, leaving Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu alone with the pendant.

"Okay, now that onii-chan's is gone...shall we do it?" Illya asked.

"Yes," Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu said in unison.

And they then destroyed the pendant, with Kiara watching from the sidelines in despair.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay. This plan shouldn't fail this time. All I need to do is to wait until the right timing, and then he'll be mine to play with..." Kiara thought as she was reviewing the plan she had in her mind. What her plan for today to get Shirou was to set up a small trap in the hallway in which one of the doors he would usually pass by was rigged with a mechanism to suck him into the room.

Which was her room coincidently.

As she was done with rigging the room, she heard some footsteps coming in from the hallway. Kiara quickly went behind a corner of the hallway, waiting for her plan to happen.

It was then Shirou came into the hallway.

_"Yes! All I need to do is to wait until he comes by room, which should activate the trap on my door. Now come Emiya Shirou..."_

Shirou kept walking.

_"Come on..."_

She heard his footsteps getting closer.

_"Come on..."_

Then she heard a door opening, followed up by Shirou yelling, "Wah!"

And the door closed.

"Yes! My plan finally worked! Let's see the results now!" Kiara thought happily as she checked on her room to see the results. However, as she went to the front door of her room, the rigged door opened on its own and out of nowhere, a pair of mechanical hands grabbed Kiara and dragged her into the room. "What the?!"

Kiara was soon dragged into her room, the door shutting itself behind her.

_"Great. I'm being trapped by my own trap...just how did he escape? And who's door was opened earlier?"_

_(Meanwhile...)_

"That's it Shero, just pull it a little bit tighter," Astraea said.

"Like this?" Shirou asked as he did what Astraea told him to do.

"Yeah."

Shirou let out a small sigh as he was helping Astraea getting dressed. As he was helping her getting dressed, Shirou can't help but think that something bad was going to happen if Astraea didn't drag him into her room earlier...

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Come on my praetor! There is a lot more I want to show you!" Nero exclaimed excitedly.

"As so do I!" Caster Nero said.

"Me too!" Bride Nero said.

Shirou let out a small sigh was being dragged by Nero, Caster Nero, and Bride Nero inside of Chaldea's mini mall. What happened was that earlier, Shirou got himself roped into one of Nero's shopping sprees by an invitation from her.

And that included her counterparts too.

Right now, Nero and her counterparts were dragging Shirou to each of their favorite stores and restaurants. Earlier, they had a meal along with some sweets and right now, they were shopping for clothes and accessories.

However, what they didn't realize was that Kiara was stalking them in the distance and was waiting for a chance to strike.

_"Jeez. Just how long can these girls go? It's already been hours since they've been together, and they haven't even taken a break. And even if they did take a break, he's always with the girls together. Man, this is taking longer than I thought..."_

As she continued to follow Shirou, Nero, Caster Nero, and Bride Nero, the four of them then stopped at a nearby bench. Kiara then hid behind a corner of a store, being unseen by them.

"Wah! Today seemed like a great day, don't you think my counterparts?" Nero asked proudly.

"Yes! A whole day of eating food, drinks, and shopping is a good day for all of us!" Caster Nero replied proudly.

"Yes! And with our praetor as well!" Bride Nero said.

"Well...I'm glad that all of you liked it," Shirou said with a smile while taking a few deep breaths.

Nero and her counterparts let out a smile. "Yeah!" they said in unison. "Speaking of which, do you mind if I use the bathroom?" Nero asked.

"So do I," Caster Nero said.

"Me too," Bride Nero said.

"Sure. I don't mind," Shirou replied.

"Great! Thank you, my praetor!" Nero and her counterparts said happily. They then left for the nearby bathroom, leaving Shirou alone in on the bench.

"Yes! Now's my chance!" Kiara thought as she was now ready to enact her plan...

Only for someone else she did not except to come by.

"Hm? Kid?" Cu said as he noticed Shirou.

"Eh? Cu? What are you doing here?" Shirou asked as he noticed Cu.

"I'm here doing some errands."

"I see."

Shirou and Lancer Cu then began to have a long conversation. As their conversation went on, Kiara looked at them in annoyance. "Come on! Hurry up already!"

Eventually, Shirou and Cu were done with their conversation and Cu left.

"Okay. Now to enact my plan and-"

"Hello my praetor!" Nero and her counterparts said as they returned from the bathroom. "Let us move on!"

"All right," Shirou said as he got out of the bench.

And Shirou, Nero, and her counterparts left the bench area.

"Damn it!" Kiara thought as she continued to follow Shirou, Nero, and her counterparts.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay. And all you need to do is to carry the four and add the two," Shirou said as he was explaining a math problem to Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts in a room that was being used for tutoring lessons.

"Yes!" Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said in unison.

"Yeah..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

Shirou let out a small sigh as he gathered some breath before continuing the lesson he was giving to Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts. As he continued giving out the lesson, Jeanne D'Arc Alter let out a sigh with a moan at the same time.

"Is there something wrong?" Jeanne D'Arc asked her altered counterpart.

"Tch. Why do I have to join this tutoring session? I'm not even bad at math you know," Jeanne D'Arc Alter said with a moan.

"Now, now, you know what they say, knowledge is power, isn't it?" Jeanne D'Arc said with a smile.

"Yeah! Follow my proper older self for once! It's better to learn new things you know!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Fine..."

As Shirou continued to give the tutoring lesson to Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, Kiara was waiting outside of the room, waiting.

"Okay, new plan. Wait until the tutoring session is over as Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts leave, and then ambush him," she thought as she continued watching the scene of Shirou tutoring. As time passed, Shirou continued tutoring Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts.

"Okay, and that's how you solve the problem. Are there any questions?"

"Nope!" Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said with a smile on their faces.

"Nope..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

"Great." Shirou then looked at the clock in the room. "Oh, it seems like there's no time left, so we'll end today's session now."

Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts got off from their seats. "Finally..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter moaned as the session was over. "Time to get out of here..."

"Thanks for the tutoring session Shirou!" Jeanne D'Arc said.

"Yeah! It was quite interesting!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"I see. Glad that both of you liked it," Shirou said. "Although I'm a bit worried about your other counterpart there..."

"Nah. She's just grumpy now. Anyways, see you! Bye!" Jeanne D'Arc said.

"Bye Shirou-san!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Bye."

Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts then left, with Shirou following them.

"Yes! Now's my chance!" Kiara thought as she prepared to ambush him. However, before she could do so, she felt a hand touching him.

"Hey."

Kiara turned around to see who the voice was. It was Hans Christan Andersen.

And he doesn't look happy.

"Just what are you up to you perverted nun?" he asked.

Kiara let out a sigh. She was not going to escape from this...

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was in the training room, practicing his swordsmanship as he kept swinging his katana at the training dummies, slashing them down easily, turning them into pieces. "Phew. Seems it looks like I did quite the workout today," Shirou thought as he examined the results of his earlier actions. "Well, time to get back then."

Shirou then continued to practice his swordsmanship on the training dummies. Meanwhile, Kiara was looking afar from the training room in a corner of the nearby hallway.

"Okay. Once he's tired out, I'll snatch him away and escape to my room. All I need to do is to wait..." Kiara thought.

As Shirou continued practicing, it was then that three certain servants came into the training room.

Okita, Okita Alter, and Musashi.

"Shirou-san!" Okita and Okita Alter said in unison.

"Shirou-kun!" Musashi said.

"Hm? Okita? Okita Alter? Musashi? What are all of you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious? We're here to train," Okita said.

"Yeah. I want to practice my swordsmanship," Okita Alter said.

"Me too!" Musashi exclaimed excitedly.

"Is that so? Then try practicing on those training dummies over there," Shirou said as he pointed at a pile of training dummies.

However, Okita Alter and Musashi had other ideas.

"Nah. I don't think that those training dummies will Shirou-san," Okita Alter said.

"Is that so? Then what do you suggest?"

Musashi then pointed at Shirou. "You," she said.

Shirou was surprised. "M-Me?"

"Yes," Okita Alter and Musashi said.

"W-Wait for a moment!" Okita interrupted "Why?"

"Isn't it obvious? He's the strongest swordsman in all of Chaldea," Okita Alter said.

"Yeah! If anything, he's the perfect opponent to practice on!" Musashi said.

"But still...let me ask him for a moment." Okita then turned to Shirou. "Shirou-san, do you mind being our sparring partner for today?"

There was silence between them as they were waiting for Shirou's answer.

"Sure. I don't mind," Shirou replied.

The three of them let out a smile. "Yes!" they exclaimed.

Soon, Shirou then started to have practice matches against Okita, Okita Alter, and Musashi. As they were having their practice matches, Kiara watched with patience as they were fighting against each other.

_"Jeez, just how long in this going to take? It's just a practice match. It shouldn't take that long..."_

Eventually, Shirou was done with the practice matches. As they were done, Okita, Okita Alter, and Musashi then came out of the training with a smile on their faces.

"Wah! Wasn't today's training interesting?" Musashi asked.

"Yes. Thanks to Shirou-san," Okita Alter replied.

"Yeah. It feels like my swordsmanship has improved a bit," Okita said.

Soon the three girls disappeared into the distance, allowing Kiara to enact her plan.

_"Yes. Now's my chance to-"_

However, it was then that a bunch of swordsmen just came into the room.

_"Aw come on! Seriously?!"_

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kama let out a sigh. "Damn it! Just how is it that every of my plans to get him have failed! It's like if there's something or someone out there to protect him from me! Just what is he?!" she thought angrily.

"Having trouble over there?" a voice said nearby. She then turned around to see where the voice came from.

It was EMIYA Alter.

"Oh my. It's you."

"Yeah. The same man you corrupted a long time ago..."

For a moment, Kiara and EMIYA didn't say anything. Then Kiara decided to start the conversation. "Just what is it that you want?"

"Just one thing. Stay away from my younger self," EMIYA Alter.

"Oh really? And why?"

"Because he doesn't deserve the torture that you gave to me in the past."

"Torture? Don't you mean pleasure? Like the one I gave to you in the past?" Kiara asked in a sultry tone.

In an instant, EMIYA Alter pulled out his guns, ready to shoot her right in the face.

"Oh my."

"Listen here. I don't want to repeat myself, but I'll say this one more time. Leave my younger self...ALONE," EMIYA Alter said with anger in his voice, especially on the last part.

"Oh. And what if I don't want to?" Kiara asked.

EMIYA Alter smirked. "You'll have to deal with the rest of us."

Kiara was surprised at EMIYA Alter's statement. "The rest of us?"

"Yeah. And they're behind you."

Kiara turned around to see what EMIYA Alter was talking about. As she turned around, there was Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illy and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, EMIYA, Kiritsugu, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, Okita and her counterpart, Musashi, the Knights of the Round, and Merlin looking at her with angry eyes.

And they all had their weapons out.

"Oh."

"Yeah. So, I would suggest giving up now," EMIYA Alter said. "Or would you rather die here now?"

Knowing that she was clearly outnumbered by the number of servants here, she made a decision.

"All right. I'll give up."

EMIYA Alter smiled. "Good."

And that's how Shirou unknowingly managed to stay away from meeting the same fate as EMIYA Alter...


	44. Projection Shenanigans

Ritsuka let out a sigh as he was sitting at the table, playing with his food as he kept moving his spoon in the bowl of soup.

"Senpai?" Mashu asked as she sat down next to Ritsuka.

"Hm? Oh, hey Mashu," Ritsuka replied.

"Senpai, is there something wrong?"

"Well...there's something on my mind recently."

"Really? What is it?"

"Well...you remember what magecraft Shirou and his future counterparts use, right?"

"You mean projection magecraft?" Mashu asked.

"Yes," Ritsuka replied.

"What about it senpai?"

"Well, you know how that with projection magecraft, Shirou and his future counterparts can practically replicate any object as long as there is no divinity in it?"

"Yes. But why are you asking me about that senpai? Do you wish to learn that as well?"

"Well no, but it got me thinking about something. Since they can replicate anything that doesn't involve any divinity, I want to try to test something out."

"And what would that be?"

"To see if he can project anything based on looking at the image itself.

"I see. But how are you going to make it work?"

"Well...I'm going to need some help..." Ritsuka said as he finished the last drop of his soup. "Follow me."

Ritsuka soon left the cafeteria with Mashu following her. Soon they arrived at the one place that holds the thing that will make Ritsuka's experiment work.

Da Vinci's workshop.

"Da Vinci, are you in there?" Ritsuka said.

"Yeah? What is it?"

"Well...I have an experiment I want to try, and it involves Emiya Shirou and his magecraft."

Upon hearing that Ritsuka's experiment involves Emiya Shirou and his magecraft, Da Vinci immediately stopped at what she was doing, headed towards the front door, and opened it.

"What kind of experiment are we talking about here?" she asked with a smile on her face.

_(A few hours later...)_

Shirou let out a sigh at the situation he was in. Right now, he was in Chaldea's testing room in which he was alone in the center of the room while Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci were in a corner of the room. Ritsuka and Mashu were doing nothing but watching while Da Vinci was on a computer that was hooked up to a giant screen that was in front of Shirou. "What is up with master today? Just earlier, I was just done fixing with something earlier and then out of nowhere, master grabbed me and dragged me to the testing room here. Not only that, but Da Vinci is here as well...something tells me that there's going to be a crazy event that is going to happen now...and why me of all people? Why not ask my future counterparts?"

"Shirou-san, are you okay?" Mashu asked, cutting Shirou off from his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Just wondering about something. Anyways, why am I brought here?"

Da Vinci let out a smirk. "Great question Shirou! You see, Ritsuka here was curious about your magecraft here, so he asked me for a little experiment he wanted to do!"

"Really now? And what experiment would that be?"

"Simple! We just want to see how projection works on other things beside weapons!"

"Is that so? How is that going to work then?"

"Simple! All we have to do is show you an image on the wall and see if you can project it or not! Now, let's get Ritsuka's experiment going!"

"But why me? Why not any of my future counterparts?"

"Well...you just happened to be neaby."

Shirou sighed again. "Sometimes I will never know what goes on in Da Vinci's head...maybe master's too..." he thought.

Soon, an image on the screen appeared in front of Shirou. The image itself was an image of a hammer.

"You want me to trace that Da Vinci?" Shirou asked.

"Yes."

Shirou then took a small breath and raised one of his hands. "Trace on." In an instant, the hammer that was in the image appeared in Shirou's hands. "Here Da Vinci," Shirou said as he gave the traced hammer to Da Vinci.

Da Vinci then examined the hammer carefully. "Hm...the hammer Shirou just traced now is like the one from the image earlier. The design, the detail, the weight, everything about it is like the original. Guess his magecraft applies to not only weapons...this is getting exciting! I wonder if the same can be applied to other stuff as well?" she thought as more ideas about the experiment came to her mind.

"Da Vinci?" Shirou said, snapping Da Vinci out of her daydreams of the experiment.

"Hm? Ah! It's nothing! Anyways, let's continue with the experiment!" Da Vinci said with some studders in her voice.

Meanwhile Ritsuka and Mashu looked at Da Vinci's behavior and was surprised with how she was acting.

"Uh...senpai, don't you think that Da Vinci has been acting weird ever since she heard about the experiment that involves Shirou-san and his magecraft?" Mashu asked.

"You may be right about that. Ever since I told Da Vinci the experiment and how it involves Emiya Shirou and his magecraft, her face and mood looked like a kid who was playing with the newest toy that came out," Ritsuka replied.

"Yeah. I've never seen Da Vinci ever get this excited over an experiment before. Do you think it's because Shirou-san can practically copy anything as long as it isn't a divine object?"

"Probably. But still though, even though this is an experiment I wanted to try out, it feels like this is an experiment Da Vinci created..." Ritsuka muttered in fear.

"Anyways, let's go onto the next image!" Da Vinci said as she moved the image on the screen to the next image. The next image itself was a box. "Try tracing that next."

"Okay." Shirou then raised one of his hands again. "Trace on." In an instant, a box appeared in front of Shirou. "Like this?"

Da Vinci then went over to where Shirou was and like the hammer, she examined the box carefully. "Like the hammer before, the box Shirou traced just now is like the same in the image. Not only that, but the quality of the box itself is like the image itself as well. If Shirou's magecraft can replicate objects, then I wonder what would happen if he would try to replicate food..." she thought.

"Um Da Vinci? Are you okay?" Ritsuka asked, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Hm? Oh yeah. Anyways, let's move on then." Da Vinci then went back to the computer to change the image on the screen in front of Shirou. In an instant, the image of the box changed and switched to what it appears to be a plate of food. The plate of food itself was a burger with a side of fries and a shake.

Shirou was surprised at what Da Vinci wanted him to trace. "Da Vinci...you want me to project that?" he asked as he pointed at the burger meal in front of him.

"Yeah. Do you have any problem with that?" Da Vinci replied.

"Well no. To be honest, this is the first time I've ever used projection for food like this actually."

Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci were surprised about what Shirou said. "Really?" they said in unison.

"Yeah. When it comes to the issue of food, I just make it with my own hands. But projecting it? That's the last thing I would have ever thought to do."

"Is that so? Then shall we skip it?" Ritsuka asked.

"Well no actually. This is the first time I'm projecting food and to be honest, a part of me wanted to see what would happen."

"I see. Well then, shall we continue?" Mashu asked.

Shirou nodded in response to Mashu's question and raised one of his hands. "Trace on." In an instant, the same burger meal that the image showed in front of Shirou. Everyone in the room was surprised at the feat Shirou had did.

But the one that was most surprised out of them all was Shirou himself.

"Wow. I did not expect that. Well, guess I'm able to project food now. But how does it taste?" Shirou thought as he examined the burger meal.

"Shirou/Shirou-san?" Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Ah, it's nothing. Anyways, it seems like I'm able to project food as well, surprisingly."

Upon hearing what Shirou just said, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci went over to see what the results were. As they arrived to where Shirou was, they were in awe over how accurate the result was to the image.

"Wow. It even looks like the one in the image senpai," Mashu said.

"Yeah. But how does it taste?" Ritsuka said.

"Well, let's find out and see!" Da Vinci said.

In an instant, Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci grabbed a piece of the burger each and took a bite. As, upon taking that bite, they were immediately surprised that it even has flavor.

"Well?" Shirou asked.

"Shirou, it seems that projection does work on food completely," Ritsuka said as he was chewing on his piece.

"Yeah. The projected burger has flavor," Mashu said.

"I'll admit, even I am surprised by this," Da Vinci said.

"I see. Guess I'm able to project food to the point where how it should taste," Shirou said.

"Yeah," Ritsuka said as he, Mashu, and Da Vinci soon finished the burger meal. "All right, shall we move on then?"

"Yeah," Shirou said.

Soon Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci soon headed back to where the computer was. As they did, Da Vinci immediately switched the image of the burger meal to a new image. The next image itself was a black and white Kawasaki Ninja 400 motorcycle. "Okay Shirou, try to project this motorcycle next," Da Vinci said.

"Okay Da Vinci," Shirou replied. He then brought out one his arms and said his aria. "Trace on." In an instant, a black and white Kawasaki Ninja 400 motorcycle appeared in front of Shirou. When the motorcycle appeared, Ritsuka immediately went towards it and looked at it in marvel.

"Wow! This is a Kawasaki Ninja 400 motorcycle!" Ritsuka said.

"Eh? Senpai, you know what brand that motorcycle is?" Mashu asked.

"Yes. Believe it or not, I was an advocate fan of motorcycles and would spend most of my time in my childhood collecting motorcycle figurines. I also know a few brands of motorcycles and which model it is."

"I see..."

While Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu were looking at the motorcycle, Da Vinci was taking note with the items Shirou has projected. "So, Shirou can project anything that does appear on the screen, which includes normal items like boxes, food, tools, and vehicles. If that's the case, then what would happen if I ask him to project that?"

As Da Vinci was thinking about the end results, she had a smile on her face.

"Well, time to find out then." Da Vinci then called Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu out. "Okay! Shirou, now we only have one more thing for you to trace!"

"Really?"

"Yeah. Ritsuka, Mashu, would you mind stepping back away from Shirou for a moment?"

"Yes," Ritsuka and Mashu replied. Soon Ritsuka and Mashu stood back away from Shirou.

"All right. Now Shirou...here is your final object to project!" Da Vinci exclaimed excitedly as she pressed a button on the laptop.

When the next image appeared, Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu were surprised at what object Shirou must project. The object was a mobile suit like the 00 Raiser mystic code Shirou possessed, and yet different. The mobile suit itself was mostly white with some red, black, and blue, has wings on the back, a gold frame, a different yet similar head, different shoulders, arms, and legs, it's chest area has a cannon in the middle, hip-mounted railguns, two beam saber handles, and two beam rifles.

"Uh Da Vinci...is that...?" Shirou stuttered.

"Yes Shirou! What are you seeing right now is the ZGMF-X20A Strike Freedom Gundam!" Da Vinci replied with a smile on her face.

Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu were surprised with how Da Vinci knew the mobile suit's name. Upon looking at it, Ritsuka realized something.

"Da Vinci! Did you look into my collection of anime by any chance?!" Ritsuka asked.

"Well...maybe?" Da Vinci replied with a sly grin on her face.

"Da Vinci! Why?" Mashu asked.

"Well, after seeing the success of the projections Shirou was doing, I want to see what would happen if he would project something like this! And plus, didn't you say you wanted to be a gundam earlier?"

"Well...yeah...but still, will this work? I mean, this is from another franchise. It doesn't exist in real life," Ritsuka said.

"That's what we're about to find out now! Anyways Shirou, let us begin the final experiment!" Da Vinci said excitedly.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Da Vinci, just what goes into your mind? Why do you think of things like this...? Well, no point to thinking about this forever, time to move on." Shirou then brought one of his hands out and began to say his aria. "Trace on."

In an instant, there was a giant light appearing in front of Shirou and the others. For a moment, Shirou and the others had to cover their eyes over how bright the light was. When the light dimmed down, Shirou and the others were surprised with the sight in front of them.

Because in front of them was the Strike Freedom Gundam in its glory. Every detail of it was completely copied from the image itself.

"Well...is that what you wanted Da Vinci?" Shirou said while catching breath from projecting a mobile suit.

Da Vinci smiled. "Yes. Ritsuka, what do you think?"

"It's...it's...it's amazing! The design, the detail, everything about it is perfect! It's like if I'm in episode 39 of Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny where Kira Yamato receives the Strike Freedom for the first time in the hanger bay of the Eternal! Da Vinci! I'm going to need a giant ladder later to see if I get in this!"

"As you wish! Just give me a moment!" Da Vinci said as she left the room for a moment to grab a ladder from her workshop.

Ritsuka then turned his attention back to the traced Strike Freedom Gundam. "Oh my god, it's a dream come true! I finally have a gundam to pilot! And it's the Strike Freedom!" he said excitedly.

"S-Senpai! Please calm down!" Mashu said, trying to calm Ritsuka down.

Shirou let out a sigh at what just happened. "Well, this could be possibly one of the weirdest things I have ever traced. Wonder how will Muramasa take it..."

_(Meanwhile in Shirou's reality marble...)_

Muramasa was just relaxing in the confines of the copied Emiya Residence inside of Shirou's reality marble. As he was relaxing, he noticed a few objects suddenly appeared in front of him. First was the hammer, then was the box, the burger meal, and the motorcycle.

Muramasa shrugged at it. "The kid's projecting something new again? Well that's interesting. Never seen that contraption before. Although I'm surprised he can do that to food. Wonder what's next..." he said to himself.

As soon as he said that, the Strike Freedom Gundam just appeared in front of him, shocking him greatly upon seeing it.

"WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?!" Muramasa yelled as he saw the Strike Freedom Gundam.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

Shirou was walking in the hallway, minding his own business. As he was walking, it was then that three goddesses came up to him.

"Emiya-kun!"

Shirou turned around to see Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal coming up behind him.

"Eh? Ishtar? Ereskigal?"

"Emiya-kun? I have a favor to ask of you. Can you do it?" Ishtar and her counterpart said.

"What is it?"

Ishtar and her rider counterpart took a deep breath in unison before asking, "Can you project some jewels for us?"

Shirou was surprised for a moment. "Huh?"


	45. Muramasa Returns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While I was writing this, apparently Delight Works had the balls to release Proto Merlin...on FGO Arcade only. WTF. Let's just hope the same doesn't happen on other characters...
> 
> Anyways, hope all of you like this...
> 
> Also, Proto-Merlin chapter in the future...

"So, let me get this straight. You want to see Sengo Muramasa?" Shirou asked.

"Yes. That's exactly right Shirou," Merlin said.

"But why? Why do you suddenly want to meet Muramasa, Merlin?"

"Well, the story between you and him interests me. While I have heard of the concept of a heroic spirit possessing a mortal body, it usually ends up with the heroic spirit taking possession of the body. However, in your case, you managed to retain your mind while gaining Sengo Muramasa's skills. Not only that, but you are able to communicate with Sengo Muramasa as well in your reality marble while he also shares your body by residing in your reality marble."

"I see. But why are you asking me? Why not ask Mashu since she's the same as me?"

"Well normally I would, but...she's out with master now."

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Figures..."

"Anyways, would you help me grant this flower mage's request, Queen Shirou?" Merlin asked with a smirk.

Shirou sighed again. "Just give me a moment to see if Muramasa is okay with that idea of yours," Shirou said.

Merlin let out a smile. "Great! Now go and ask him!"

"Will do. Just let me activate my reality marble for a moment..." Shirou said as he closed his eyes and began to activate his reality marble.

"Ah wait. Not like that," Merlin interrupted him.

Shirou was confused. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well...I want him to possess your body for a moment."

Shirou was surprised for a moment before saying, "Huh?!"

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Muramasa was relaxing in the copy of the Emiya Residence, looking at the clear blue sky of the reality marble. "Wow, what a great view my host's reality marble has. A clear sky, a lush green field of various flowers, and most importantly...there are swords everywhere for me to study. Speaking of which, I wonder what is that giant contraption my host traced a while ago?" he thought as he then turned to the Strike Freedom Gundam in the corner nearby the Emiya Residence. "Even now that giant contraption still confuses me. I've never seen this type of thing before in my lifetime," he thought.

As Muramasa continued looking at the Strike Freedom Gundam, he felt a familiar presence coming in. He then turned around to see Emiya Shirou. "Hey there Shirou."

"Hey there Muramasa," Shirou said as he sat down on the porch.

"So. What brings you here? You got into trouble again and need my advice?" Muramasa jokingly asked.

"Nope. Rather, it's a request from Merlin."

"Merlin? Who's that? Is that somebody new?"

"You already seen him before. White hair, white robes, carries a wooden staff? Remember?"

"Oh yeah. I remember seeing a fellow that matches your explanation. It was during that time when you brought a lot of people here for your noble phantasm testing."

"Yeah...along with that was when I beat the King of Heroes."

Muramasa let out a chuckle upon hearing Shirou saying that. "Hah! That arrogant golden brat had it coming! I take it that word has spread about that event?"

"You have no idea. After that event was spread throughout of Chaldea, nearly everyone at Chaldea wanted to meet me because of either wanting to have a sparring match against me or wanting to look at Tsumugari Muramasa. Not only that, but I have been receiving requests to join parties from other servants, especially the Japanese servants. They consider me as their inspiration because of how I beat the King of Heroes with your noble phantasm."

"Well then, guess you're getting popular after all!" Muramasa said while laughing and slapping Shirou on the back.

"Yeah...and it was something I did not expect..." Shirou said as he was breathing in some air from Muramasa's slaps on the back.

"Anyways, what was the request that Merlin fellow wanted to talk about?"

"Well...he wanted to speak to you."

Muramasa was surprised. "Me? He wanted to speak to me?"

"Yeah."

"What for?"

"He's interested in the story of how you and I met."

"Is that so? Then why not activate your reality marble and invite him in like before?"

Shirou let out a sigh. "Apparently, he wants to speak in front of you without any hesitations or interferences. Meaning, he wants you to possess my body for today."

Muramasa was stunned. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah."

"I see."

"So...do you accept Merlin's request?"

Muramasa gave Shirou's question a long thought. "Hm...one whole day of possessing my host's body...it does sound interesting. And I do want to see what Chaldea is like, along with some of the other servants that live over there..." he thought.

For a moment, there was silence between the two as Muramasa was still in thought.

"Well?" Shirou asked.

"All right. It wouldn't hurt to possess your body for today. And plus, I do want to see what Chaldea looks like."

Shirou smiled. "All right. Should we commence the possession then?"

"Sure. But before that, there's something I want to ask."

Muramasa then turned to the Strike Freedom Gundam.

"What the heck is that?" he asked as he pointed to it.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Let me explain..."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Merlin was waiting for Muramasa to appear. "Wonder what's taking Shirou so long? A possession shouldn't take that long. Maybe they're having a chat about something?" he thought as he was looking at Shirou who had his eyes closed.

Soon, Shirou opened his eyes.

"Um, is this Shirou or Sengo Muramasa that I am talking to?" Merlin asked.

For a moment, there was silence between the two. Then a voice came out of Shirou's body.

"Huh? Who are you? Are you Merlin that Shirou was talking about by any chance?" Muramasa said.

Merlin let out a smile now knowing that the person he was talking to is Sengo Muramasa. "Yes. I am Merlin, the Wizard of Flowers. It is a pleasure to meet you Sengo Muramasa."

"Wizard of Flowers? Isn't that a flashy title for you?" Muramasa said with a chuckle.

"Well that's rich, coming from someone who was called the Demonic Blacksmith," Merlin replied.

Muramasa let out a sigh. "You got me there. Anyways, you said that you wanted to know the story about how I met my host."

"Precisely. However, would you mind if we take this conversation somewhere else? I prefer the cafeteria since there's food and drinks over there."

"I don't mind."

"Great."

Muramasa and Merlin then walked towards the cafeteria. As they were walking, they came across a certain group of servants.

The Knights of the Round.

"Queen Shirou!"

"Mother!"

Muramasa was surprised with the names the Knights of the Round just said. "Queen Shirou? Mother? Just what kind of trouble did my host managed to get himself into? Never mind, Shirou is a literal magnet of trouble. I mean, I've seen him in many situations that want him dead."

Soon the Knights of the Round went up to where Muramasa and Merlin were.

"Hey mother, what's for dinner tonight?" Mordred asked.

Muramasa was confused. "Mother? Who's the mother?"

"What? Have you forgotten already? It's you."

Muramasa then looked to Merlin. "Merlin, what is going on here?" he whispered to him.

"Well, you see, a while ago, because of Shirou's relationship with Arturia and her counterparts, Mordred sees you as her new mother," Merlin whispered back to him.

"I see."

"Hey, what are you two talking about?" Mordred interrupted.

Muramasa then turned to Mordred. "Listen kid, I'm not Shirou not now."

"Eh? Then who are you then?"

"Sengo Muramasa."

The Knights of the Round were surprised upon hearing Muramasa's introduction. "Eh? You're Sengo Muramasa? Our queen's ancestor?" Gawain asked.

"Yeah."

The rest of the Knights of the Round then turned to Merlin. "Merlin, what have you done to our queen?!" Lancelot asked.

"Hey! Hey! I didn't do anything!" Merlin defended.

"Oh really? Because it looks like it has your work written all over it," Tristan said.

"So, tell me, what did you do to Queen Shirou?" Bedivere asked.

"Yeah!" Gareth said.

As Merlin was being interrogated by the Knights of the Round, it was then that Muramasa decided to step in. "Hey, lay off the wizard for a moment. While this was his idea, he didn't do anything to me, so lay him off, got it?"

Hearing Muramasa's words, the Knights of the Round stooped interrogating Merlin and listened to what Muramasa has to say.

"All right. There's a reason why Shirou is not here and why I am here. The thing is that Merlin wanted a request to talk with me, so Shirou and I swapped places. Right now, Shirou's is inside this body's reality marble."

"I see..." Gawain said.

"Yeah. So lay off the wizard or else I'll bash all your heads in! You got that?!" Muramasa yelled.

"Y-Yes!"

Muramasa let out a sigh. "Well then, I suppose we should move on Merlin?"

"Yeah..." Merlin replied with a sigh as well.

"Wait. There's something I need to ask you Muramasa," Mordred said to Muramasa.

"Hm? And who are you?"

"I'm Mordred."

"Mordred huh? Were you the one that kept calling me mother?"

"Yeah. You got a problem with that?"

"Nah. That's Shirou's problem to deal with, so it's not my problem."

"I see. Well then, I have one question to ask you then."

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well, since you're my mother's ancestor, should I call you great, great, great, great, great, great grandmother or great, great, great, great, great, great, step grandmother? Or great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather or great, great, great, great, great, great, step grandfather?"

For a moment, there was silence as Mordred was waiting for his answer.

"Just call me what you want. I don't care."

Mordred smiled. "Is that so? Then I should call you... great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather then."

"Whatever you wish. By the way Mordred."

"Huh?"

Muramasa then took off the white kimono and put it on Mordred. "Wear this. I don't want you to catch a cold while you're wearing that," Shirou said as he pointed to her outfit.

Mordred quickly blushed. "F-Fine. Whatever you say great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather. Come on you guys." She then proceeded to leave Muramasa and Merlin, with everyone else following her.

"Well then. See you Muramasa. Merlin," Lancelot said.

"Yeah. Bye you guys."

"Bye," Tristain, Bedivere, and Gareth said as they left.

"Well then, shall we move on?"

"I agree. Let us move on then."

Muramasa and Merlin then resumed their walk to the cafeteria. As they did, they came across a certain servant that knew Muramasa.

"Shirou-kun!"

Both Muramasa and Merlin turned around to see where the voice was coming from. It was from Musashi, who was walking towards them from behind.

"Ah Musashi. It's been a while since I last saw you," Muramasa said.

Musashi was confused with what Muramasa said. "What do you mean Shirou-kun? The last time we saw each other was during our practice match against each other a few days ago! Is there something wrong with your head?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, this may sound weird to you, but you're not taking to Shirou right now. It's me, Sengo Muramasa, Musashi."

Musashi was surprised. "What?! Gramps?! You're here now?!"

"Yeah."

"But how?!"

"Well, let's just say my host let me possess his body for one day under the request from this man right here," Muramasa said as he pointed to Merlin.

"Is that so?" Musashi then turned to Merlin. "And who are you?"

Merlin's lips turned into a smile. "Ah, I see we haven't met before my fair lady. My name is Merlin, the Wizard of Flowers," he said with a bow in the hand.

"I see. Nice to meet you Merlin!" Musashi said cheerfully with a bow as well. "Anyways gramps, what kind of request did Merlin ask you for?"

"Well, he was interested in the story about my meeting with my host, so he asked me to do this."

"I see. But why in this way though? Couldn't he just do the same way as before?"

"Well apparently, this guy here wants to do it without any inferences," Muramasa said as he pointed at Merlin who kept on smiling. "Anyways, we're on our way to the cafeteria. Want to join us?"

"I can't. I got to do something for master later, but thanks for asking!" Musashi exclaimed happily.

"I see. I guess that we'll be leaving now then," Muramasa said.

"Okay. Bye gramps!" Musashi said excitedly as she left.

"Great. Now, let's move on, shall we?" Merlin asked while one of his eyes was twitching from the amount of attention Muramasa was receiving from Musashi.

"Yeah," Muramasa replied, not knowing what Merlin was feeling now.

Muramasa and Merlin then continued walking down the hallway. As they did, they ended up meeting another group of servants.

Okita and Okita Alter.

"Shirou-san!" the two said in unison.

Muramasa let out a sigh. "Not this again..." he thought as Okita and her alter went up towards him. "Who are you two?"

"Eh? You don't remember us Shirou?" Okita asked.

"Yeah. About that, Shirou's not here now," Muramasa said.

"Then who are you then?" Okita Alter asked.

"Sengo Muramasa."

"Eh?! The Demonic Blacksmith?! You're here Sengo-san?!" Okita asked.

"Yeah. If you're wondering why I'm here now, it's because Shirou and I swapped places because of him right here," Muramasa said as he pointed to Merlin, who let out a small smile.

"I see...anyways, can I ask you something?" Okita Alter asked.

"Sure. What is it?"

"Can you make a Muramasa blade for me?"

Okita was surprised by his counterpart's question. "My altered self! Why are you asking Sengo-san such a request?!"

"Eh? But I want a Muramasa Blade..." Okita Alter muttered.

Fearful of the fact that her altered counterpart just made a selfish request to a well-known blacksmith, Okita quickly grabbed her altered counterpart by the shoulder and started bowing apologetically to Muramasa. "I'm sorry Sengo-san for my altered counterpart's rude request! If you will excuse me, I'm going to teach her some lessons now!"

Okita then dragged her altered counterpart away, confusing Muramasa.

_"Just what was all that about?"_

Muramasa then continued his walk with Merlin. As they did, they somehow ended up meeting with Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts.

"Shirou/Shirou-san!" Jeanne D'Arc and her alter santa lily counterpart yelled while Jeanne D'Arc Alter was following them.

Muramasa let out a sigh. "Really? A third time?" he thought as Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts were coming up to Muramasa. "Listen, before you can say anything yet, Shirou is not here now.

"Eh? Then who are you then?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily asked.

"Sengo Muramasa."

"I see. Hey adult me, don't you have anything to say to him?"

Jeanne D'Arc Alter then blushed. "W-What?! What are you talking about?!"

"You know. Just say it to him," Jeanne D'Arc said with a smile that even terrified Jeanne D'Arc Alter.

Realizing that there was no way out of this, Jeanne D'Arc Alter then said something to Muramasa.

"Tch. Hey Muramasa, next time you see Shirou, tell him that Jeanne D'Arc Alter appreciates the extra tutoring from before..." she muttered to Muramasa.

"I see...well, I'll tell that to him when I see him next time," Muramasa said.

"Good." Jeanne D'Arc Alter then went back to her counterparts. "There, I said it. Happy now?"

Jeanne D'Arc let out a smile. "Yes. Anyways, we'll be leaving now. Bye Sengo Muramasa!"

"Bye Sengo Muramasa-san!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

"Tch...bye Sengo Muramasa," Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

And Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts left, leaving Muramasa and Merlin alone. "Who was that?" Muramasa thought.

However, before he could complete his thoughts, another certain group of servants came by.

"My Praetor!"

Muramasa was shocked at the amount of girls he was recognized just now. "Okay, how is it that Shirou knows all of those girls...?"

"My praetor! How happy am I to see you!" Nero said in a joyful tone.

"Umu! It's been quite a while!" Caster Nero said.

"Umu! What are you up to my praetor?" Bride Nero asked.

Muramasa sighed again. "Okay, this may sound weird to all of you, but I'm not Shirou at the moment."

"Eh? Then who are you then?" Nero asked.

"Sengo Muramasa."

"Eh? Sengo Muramasa? Our praetor's ancestor?" Caster Nero asked.

"Yeah."

"Well this is interesting! How did this happen?" Bride Nero asked.

"Well, me and Shirou switched places for today, and that's it," Muramasa replied.

"I see...umu! There is a lot of things I want to ask you Muramasa!" Nero said.

"As so do I!" Caster Nero said.

"Me too!" Bride Nero said.

As Muramasa was being bombarded with multiple questions from Nero and her counterparts, Merlin was feeling jealous from the sidelines. Eventually, he couldn't handle it from the sidelines and then grabbed Muramasa's arm.

"Okay, I know that all of you have a lot of questions for him right now, but I need to take him elsewhere for something else. Now if you will excuse me," Merlin said with a fake smile as he quickly dragged Muramasa away from Nero and her counterparts, leaving them in the dust. As Merlin was dragging Muramasa, he had a stink eye on him the entire time.

"You know, is attracting women a thing in your family Muramasa? Because from the looks of it, it sure seems like it! First, I've seen Shirou do it, and now you! Okay, maybe it's because of Shirou's body, but still! What the heck?! This is so unfair!" Merlin thought as he looked at Muramasa jealously.

"Why is Merlin looking at me like that? I haven't even done anything to him and yet he's already looking at me like I stole something from him...just why?" Muramasa thought as he looked at hum with no clue over why he looks mad at him.

Eventually, the group arrived at the cafeteria, where things were about to get even crazier.

Because in the cafeteria was Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Illya, Astraea, Irisviel, Kritsugu, Jaguar-man, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Lancer Cu, Rider Medusa, Caster Medea, Berserker Heracules, and Archer Gilgamesh.

However, instead of greeting him like usual, they instead looked at him with curiosity.

Because they noticed something different about his presence.

"Shirou?"

"Emiya-kun?"

"Senpai?"

"Onii-chan?"

"Sherou?"

"Shirou?"

EMIYA said nothing. However, he noticed something.

"That isn't my younger self over there...just what is this weird feeling?"

"Kid?"

"Shirou?"

"Boy...?"

Hercules just growled.

"Faker..."

For a moment, nothing happened. Then Arturia spoke out. "Shirou? Are you okay...?"

Muramasa let out a sigh. "My host is not here now."

"Eh? Host? Then you are-"

"Sengo Muramasa."

Everyone besides Heracules and Gilgamesh were shocked. "Eh?! Sengo Muramasa?! But how?!"

"Well...tell that to this guy here," he said as he pointed to Merlin.

Everyone then turned to Merlin, especially Arturia.

"Merlin...what have you done with Shirou here..." she muttered with her tone getting slightly angrier.

"Hehehe...let us all calm down..." Merlin nervously said.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So let me get this straight, Merlin was interested in how both you and Emiya-kun met so that's why you're possessing his body," Ishtar said.

"Yeah."

"How is that possible?" Illya asked.

"Well it's quite simple. We just swap places for a bit. Right now, he's residing in his reality marble now."

"I see. But this is interesting though..." Astraea said.

"Yes. We're seeing senpai, but that is not senpai in front of us," Parvati said.

"Yeah. It's hard to tell if you're Shirou or Muramasa..." Jaguar-man said.

"And the voice doesn't help as well," Medusa said.

Muramasa sighed. "You're telling me. Earlier, a bunch of servants mistook me for my host earlier..."

"Really? Who?" Irisviel asked.

"Well...Musashi, some knights, a weirdly dressed girl who calls me great, great, great grandfather, and some girls that look very similar to that girl over there," Muramasa said as he pointed to Arturia.

"I see..." Arturia said.

"Still though, even though you're being called great, great, great grandfather, you still look young. What's your secret? A potion of eternal youth? Or a fountain of youth?" Lancer Cu jokingly said.

"Yeah. I'm quite interested too..." Medea jokingly said.

"Eh? You're interested in that too you old hag?" Cu said to Medea.

"Tch. I'll burn you cur," Medea said angrily to Cu.

"Hah, you mongrels are having a conversation over this lowly blacksmith...along with the faker's body," Gilgamesh sneered.

Muramasa ignored Gilgamesh's remark and then continued talking. "Anyways, does everyone here want to know the story between me and my host? Even though some of you have already heard of it."

"I don't mind," Arturia said.

"So do I," EMIYA said.

"Sure. I don't mind," Ishtar said.

"Me too," Parvati said.

"I-I want to hear this too!" Illya said.

"As do I," Astraea said.

"Me too!" Irisviel and Jaguar-man said.

"I'm interested in this story as well," Kiritsugu said.

"Finally! The story that I have been waiting for!" Merlin said excitedly.

"I want to know as well," Cu said.

"So do I," Medusa said.

"The story about the boy fusing with a heroic spirit does interest me, so I'll listen."

Hercules and Gilgamesh didn't answer.

"All right. The story is a bit short, but I'll say it anyways," Muramasa said.

Everyone stayed quiet, waiting for the story Muramasa was about to say.

"It all started after during the showdown I had against Amakusa Shirou Tokisada which involved my death upon using Tsumugari Muramasa. What happened was that after the fight, I remained as a spirit, living peacefully in the afterlife. However, that's where something unexpected happened."

"What do you mean by that?" Ishtar asked.

"Well, my sleep was interrupted by my host. What happened was that during his travels, he encountered a hidden Muramasa blade, which triggered the meeting between me and him.

"Is that so?" Parvati asked.

"Yeah. And the next thing that I knew, I woke up in a field of flowers and swords."

Merlin laughed at what Muramasa said. "A field of flowers and swords? Even though you're already dead?"

Muramasa sighed. "Anyways, when I woke in the field of flowers and swords, I noticed that there was someone else there. When I got up to see who that person was, my mind was shocked upon seeing him."

"That person was onii-chan, right?"

"Yes. When I saw my host for the first time, I had a shocked look on my face. And he did so too. In fact, I thought his face matched mine upon seeing me for the first time too," Muramasa said with a chuckle.

"I can't blame you. I mean the first time when you Sherou introduced yourself to us, we were all surprised that you look exactly like him," Astraea said.

"Yeah. Although I think the person that got the biggest shock was him over there," Irisviel said as she looked at EMIYA.

"Yeah. Even now I can't even get the idea of the blacksmith looking like my younger self out of my head..." he thought.

"Anyways, what happened was that afterwards, we introduced ourselves. It was then that I sensed that he and I were quite similar, and I thought that he was my descendant. It became even more clear when he projected a sword in front of me."

"Really?" Jaguar-man asked.

"Yeah. I'll admit, I was a little bit ticked about his magecraft at first, but I got over it later. Afterwards, me and my host had a chat and I asked him about his life. When he told me about all the stuff he did in his past and what is goal was, I was so damn impressed that I struck a deal with him."

"What kind of deal was it?" Kiritsugu asked.

Muramasa smirked. "In allowing to reside in his reality marble and studying the number of weapons he traced, I would give him knowledge of the Muramasa blades so he would trace and use them, including the Tsumugari Muramasa."

"Tsumugari Muramasa...that's your former noble phantasm, right?" Merlin asked.

"Yeah...and the same blade that beat that golden spoiled brat over there," Muramasa said with a smirk on his face.

"Why you...!" Gilgamesh growled.

"Anyways, that's the story about how I met my host, who happened to be my descendant. Hope all of you enjoyed it."

Ishtar, Parvati, Illya, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, Kiritsugu, Merlin, Cu, Medusa, and Medea were surprised with the story Muramasa just said, Arturia and EMIYA smiled after hearing the story again, and Hercules and Gilgamesh didn't say anything.

"Wow...I did not expect the meeting between you two to go like this..." Ishtar said.

"Yeah..." Parvati said.

"Me neither. And the deal you two made, it sounds crazy..." Illya and Jaguar-man said.

"Yeah. It sounds like the deal Illya made..." Irisviel said.

"No kidding. All the knowledge about the Muramasa blades, plus a noble phantasm? That's a good deal," Astraea said.

"Yeah. Even I wouldn't pass on a deal like that," Merlin said.

"Especially the additional noble phantasm part," Cu said.

"Yeah..." Medusa and Medea said.

"Hmph, I don't see why all of you are that interested in the blacksmith's story over how he met the faker," Gilgamesh sneered.

Nearly everyone mentally groaned from Gilgamesh's remark. "Will you just shut up for once?" Cu asked Gilgamesh.

"Yeah! And why are you being rude to Muramasa?" Ishtar asked.

"Hmph. He's just a lowly blacksmith, compared to me, the king of heroes! And what's more, he's also residing in the faker's body!"

"And why does that bother you? Especially my host?" Muramasa asked.

"Because your host can copy any weapon that he sees, and that's something that I cannot permit! Only I should possess every weapon in all of history! After all, everything on this earth is my treasure! Therefore, everything should belong to me only!"

Muramasa let out a sigh. "And that's why you can't stand my host? Because you can't stand his existence?" he asked.

"Yes!"

"And why do you keep calling him faker?"

"Hmph! It's because every weapon he copies is an inferior version of my treasures! And they're nothing but just a fake! Just like him and his existence!"

At that point, nearly everyone wanted to beat the shit out of Gilgamesh for insulting Shirou and Muramasa. Especially Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Illya, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and Merlin.

However, Muramasa said nothing, making Gilgamesh smile.

"Well, you have nothing to say you lowly blacksmith?" Gilgamesh asked arrogantly.

For a moment, Muramasa said nothing. Then he took a deep breath and said his reply.

"Like I give a damn about what you say, you loudmouth."

Everyone was shocked at Muramasa's reply. However, Gilgamesh was not just surprised, he was also mad that Muramasa had the nerve to backtalk to him in front of his face.

"What did you just say to me you mongrel?!" Gilgamesh yelled.

"Like I said, like I give a damn about what you say, you loudmouth," Muramasa repeated.

At that point, Gilgamesh exploded.

"HOW DARE YOU TALK BACK AT ME! THE KING OF HEROES!"

"King of Heroes? Really, that's what you call yourself? Huh, well to me, you don't even act like a king of heroes. Right now, you're acting like a narrow-minded, egotistical, spoiled golden brat," Muramasa said.

"WHAT?! HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO ME THAT WAY!"

"And here's another thing. You may be right about my host being a faker but let me tell you this. My host spent many years gathering those weapons and adding them to his reality marble. You on the other hand, were already born with them, so I don't want to hear any insults from a guy who already had everything handed to him on a silver platter. Not only that, but a while ago, you said my host's swords are weaker than yours because they're inferior copies. And yet, they broke your so-called treasures. What do you have to say about that?"

"WHY YOU-!"

"Also, you keep saying that everything in the world is your treasure but let me ask you this. Do you even have a Muramasa blade in that treasury of yours?"

Everyone was quiet upon hearing Muramasa's question.

"Well, do you?"

"Hmph! I'll show you! Gate of Babylon!"

Soon, golden portals appeared behind Gilgamesh. However, in a surprise turn of events, nothing came out of the portals, resulting in everyone being shocked, especially Gilgamesh.

"What?!" Gilgamesh yelled.

"Well then, guess all of the amount of talking about you saying about how you possess every treasure in the world is a big fat lie then. Because I don't see any Muramasa blade coming out of there. Then that proves one thing..."

Silence occurred.

"Only my host possess all the Muramasa blades, and you don't," Muramasa said with a smirk on his face.

It was then that Gilgamesh hit his breaking point, pulled out a sword from the Gate of Babylon, and went lunging for Muramasa, preparing to strike him down.

"How...how...HOW DARE YOU MAKE FUN OF ME, YOU LOWLY BLACKSMITH!" Gilgamesh yelled as he was about to swing at him.

It was at that moment that Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Illya, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and Jaguar-man prepared to draw their weapons and were about to rush at Gilgamesh...

Only to have their chances destroyed as Muramasa punched Gilgamesh so hard that he flew towards the ceiling, knocking him out as he got stuck on there with most of his body dangling lifelessly.

"What an uncivilized fellow..." he said as he brushed off his hands.

Everyone was shocked upon seeing what just happened. "Muramasa...did you just-" Arturia was about to say but was cut off.

"Punched him so hard that he went up to the ceiling? Yeah, so what?" Muramasa said.

"Well...I'm surprised that you can do this..." Ishtar said while trying to hold back her giggles from what she just witnessed.

"Yeah. That was surprising to see..." Parvati said.

"Wow, that looked like from an anime..." Illya said.

"As expected from Sherou's ancestor! The amount of grace and finesse in that punch...it's like a professional fighter's!" Astraea said as she was fangirling over Muramasa's punch.

"Yeah! Take that arrogant king! You don't mess with Shi-ah wait, Muramasa!" Jaguar-man said.

"Oh my, that was interesting," Irisviel said with a smile.

Surprisingly, Kiritsugu had a smile on his face. "Wow. That's something I don't get to see..."

"You're telling me old man. Never have I ever thought to see the King of Heroes defeated like this..." EMIYA replied as he was chuckling a bit.

"Hahahahahahahaha! No way! You actually punched him so hard he's stuck in the ceiling! This is clearly the greatest moment I have ever seen!" Cu said while laughing at the same time.

"I agree with you! My clairvoyance did not predict this great moment! Oh man, I've should have brought a camera to record this!" Merlin said as he was laughing as well.

"Don't worry, I've already recorded that," Medea said.

Cu and Merlin turned to Medea. "Show it to us later," they said in unison.

"Damn, that felt relaxing," Medusa said.

Hercules even growled cheerfully.

Muramasa sighed. "Well then, I'm going to leave now."

"Eh? Already?" Merlin asked.

"Yeah. I want to explore Chaldea a bit more."

"I see. Anyways, thanks for telling the story Muramasa!" Merlin asked.

"Hey, thank my host for that." Soon, Muramasa left the cafeteria, leaving everyone else behind.

"Now then...what are we going to do with this?" Merlin said as he looked at the body of Gilgamesh hanging from the ceiling.

For once, everyone in the room was conflicted with bringing him down or letting him stay there.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking in the hallway, minding his own business. It was then he heard a familiar voice.

"Mother!"

Shirou turned around to Mordred coming towards him. "Hey Mordred. What's going on?"

"Mother, can you call great, great, great grandfather for a moment?"

Shirou was confused. "Great, great, great grandfather?"

Mordred let out a sigh. "I'm talking about Muramasa."

"Muramasa? Why?"

"Because I want to hear the story of how he punched that arrogant golden asshole to the ceiling in the cafeteria!" Mordred exclaimed cheerfully.

Shirou was shocked upon hearing this. "Muramasa, just what did you do when I let you control my body?!" he thought.

And just like that, Muramasa became a legend in all of Chaldea...as the man who knocked out the King of Heroes and sent him flying into the ceiling...


	46. Helping A Friend Out

Shirou was in the cafeteria, preparing himself for his duties in the cafeteria. "Phew. Today will be a rush as usual, especially when it comes to Arturia and her counterparts...they can quite stomach the amount of food here. Well, at least Chaldea does have the amount of food to feed everyone here, or else this place would have been gone earlier..." he thought.

As Shirou continued preparing himself, it was then that a certain servant came in.

"Shirou!"

Shirou turned around to see who called him out earlier. As he did, he saw Amakusa Shirou Tokisada coming into the room with a smile on his face.

"Hm? Oh, hey Amakusa. What brings you here?" Shirou asked as he placed a washed plate on the drying rack.

"Well...there's a favor I have for you. Would you mind hearing it out?"

"I don't mind. So what is this favor you're asking me for?"

"Well...can you teach me to cook?"

Shirou was surprised. "What? You want me to teach you how to cook?"

"Yes."

"But why?"

"Well..." Amakusa said as his mind went back to what happened a few days ago...

_(A few days ago...)_

Amakusa Shirou and Semiramis were relaxing on a couch in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms. As they were relaxing with one each other, Amakusa Shirou asked Semiramis something.

"Hey Semiramis. Can I ask you something?"

"What is it Shirou?"

"Do you have a birthday?"

"A birthday? What is that? Enlighten me on what a birthday is."

Amakusa smiled. "A birthday is the anniversary of the birth of a person, or figuratively of an institution. Birthdays of people are celebrated in numerous cultures, often with birthday gifts, birthday cards, a birthday party, or a rite of passage."

"Is that so? So, it's like a celebration for a person's day of birth. That does sound interesting actually."

"Yes."

"But why are you asking me this?"

"No reason. I just feel like asking you that question. That is all."

"I see..."

As Amakusa Shirou and Semiramis continued relaxing on the couch, Semiramis suddenly had an idea plopped into her head.

"You know, the idea of a birthday seems to be quite interesting. I wish to have one as well now."

"Really? You never experienced a birthday before?"

"Yeah. In fact, right now, I'm declaring that next week will be my birthday, so I will be expecting something grand in my honor as empress. Don't disappoint me, my former master," Semiramis said with a smile.

Amakusa Shirou smiled back. "As you wish."

"Good."

And the two then continued relaxing on the couch. As they did, Amakusa Shirou was having thoughts about Semiramis's earlier declaration. "A birthday party for Semiramis huh? Well that may sound interesting...guess I can do a private dinner party between the two of us. I could ask master to rent out a room for us in Chaldea and make the event a secret. Which leaves the big question, what should I do about the food?" he thought.

After a few minutes on pondering the main question about the food, he had one solution.

_"Well, guess I could ask Emiya Shirou about this..."_

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's why I need your help Shirou," Amakusa Shirou said as he was done explaining his situation.

Shirou took a deep breath before he began to recall Amakusa Shirou's idea in his own words. "So, let me get this straight. You wanted to plan a private dinner for Semiramis, who happened to be your former servant."

"Right. And if you're wondering, I've already asked master to make a private room for the both of us."

"I see. And you're here because you want me to teach you how to cook?"

"Yes. That is correct."

"I see. But why me though? Why not ask any of the other chefs in Chaldea? Like Beni-enma? Or Tamamo?"

"Well, it's because they're all busy with their work. Especially Beni-enma in which she's maintaining her restaurant right now. Anyways, can you help me with this?"

"Well...okay. Just let me get myself ready for this."

Amakusa Shirou smiled. "Thank you," he said as he got into the kitchen where Shirou was.

"No problem. So Amakusa, what kind of dish were you thinking of making for Semiramis?"

"Well, that's the thing. I have no clue what to make for her."

"I see. Do you know if she likes something?"

Amakusa Shirou then gave Shirou's question some thought. After a few seconds of thinking, he had his answer. "Well, she does like Syrian food. After all, that's where she came from, and she's the known as the wise queen of Assyria."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

"I see. Let me check what we have in the fridge first and I'll see if there is something I can think of to make."

"Please do."

Shirou then check the fridge to see if there was anything in there that he can cook. As he checked the fridge, what he saw in there was porgy, lemons, garlic cloves, jalapeños, and many more. However, when he noticed the porgy, a thought came into his mind.

"With these ingredients, I could make Galilee-style whole fried fish..."

"Shirou, have you thought of something to make?" Amakusa Shirou asked Shirou, making him snap out of his thoughts.

"Yeah. We're going to make Galilee-style whole fried fish," Shirou replied.

"Galilee-style whole fried fish...that sounds like Syrian cooking, which is in the middle east. You've been there before?"

"Yeah. I've been there once, so I know how to make it. Anyways, let's get cooking now."

"Yes."

Shirou then brought out the porgi, lemons, garlic, jalapeños, some cumin seeds, sweet paprika, kosher salt, flour, parsley, and canola oil. "Okay, rub the fish all over with a 1/4th cup of salt, massaging it into their skin and cavities. Then rinse under cold water and pat dry."

"Like this?" Amakusa Shirou said as he did the same thing as Shirou does.

"Yes. Now we're making the spice rub," Shirou said as he grabbed parsley, garlic, canola oil, lemon juice, pepper, cumin, salt, jalapeños, and paprika. "In a small food processor, combine the parsley, garlic, canola oil, lemon juice, pepper, cumin, salt, jalapeños, paprika, and pulse them to a coarse paste. Once you're done with them, set it aside."

Amakusa Shirou did the same and placed all of the mentioned ingredients into a food processor.

"Okay. Now, make three 1/8th inch deep cuts along the length of each fish side. Rub one tablespoon of spice rub on the outside of each fish."

Amakusa Shirou then grabbed a kitchen knife and made 1/8th inch deep cuts along the length of each fish side. As Amakusa Shirou made the deep cuts, Shirou was impressed with how good Amakusa Shirou was with the knife he was holding.

"Wow. You're good with that knife over there," Shirou complemented.

"Why thank you. I had experience with a sword and black keys after all. This is easy," Amakusa Shirou said with a smile on his face.

"I see. Okay then, now line a baking sheet with wax paper. Then pour the flour onto a large rimmed plate. Dredge each fish in the flour to coat on all sides; pack a little into the cuts and cavities. Shake off any excess flour, then transfer the fish to the baking sheet."

Amakusa Shirou followed the instructions Shirou said earlier and floured the fish while preparing the baking sheet.

"Okay. Now, set a deep-fry thermometer in a large, heavy pot. Add the oil and heat it up to 350 degrees. Add as many fish as you can without crowding them and fry them. Make sure to turn them once until they're golden brown on both sides. I would recommend cooking each side for about four to six minutes."

Amakusa Shirou then grabbed a pot, added the oil in, and heated up to 350 degrees. As the temperature of the oil reached 350 degrees, he then added as much fish as he could with crowded them into the pot and fried them. As minutes passed, he checked each side of the fish until he confirmed they were golden brown.

"Okay. Now transfer the fish to a paper-towel-lined platter. We're going to serve it on a bed of maple leaves with fennel seeds and any leftover chilies from earlier."

Amakusa Shirou then transferred to a paper-towel-lined platter. Afterwards, he then grabbed a plate and on it put some maple leaves with fennel seeds and chilies. As Amakusa Shirou was done with the plating, he and Shirou looked at their work, and was impressed.

Especially Amakusa Shirou.

"You know, I'm surprised," Amakusa Shirou suddenly said.

"About what?" Shirou asked.

"Well, about the fact that you know what dish to make for Semiramis. How did you know about this dish?"

"Well, during my time alive, I went to many countries during my travels. One of them which was in the middle east, where Semiramis was from."

"I see. That's very interesting. I'm glad to hear this."

"Yeah. Anyways, let's move on to the next thing," Shirou said as he went back to the fridge to grab some more ingredients.

"Eh? We're not done yet?"

"Yeah. I mean after all; a birthday isn't complete without the most important part."

Shirou was slightly confused for a moment before the answer hit him. He smiled after realizing what Shirou meant.

He then went back to helping Shirou...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Here's the room that Shirou has privately reserved for the both of us...I wonder what kind of setting he has set up for the both of us...?" Semiramis thought as she looked at the door in front of her.

As Semiramis entered into the room, what she saw impressed her. The inside of the room was a replica of her throne room at the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Each detail was replicated to the point where it looked like the real thing. In the middle of it all was Amakusa Shirou, waiting for her at a dinner table.

"Hello Semiramis," Amakusa Shirou said with a smile on his face.

"Well, well, Shirou. You sure impressed me today. Did you ask Da Vinci to replicate my throne room?" Semiramis asked.

"Yes. And I asked master to reserve this room for the both of us."

"I see. Anyways, what do you have prepared for me?" Semiramis asked as she came closer to where Amakusa Shirou was.

"Well, I've prepared a dinner for the two of us."

"I see. Hope the dish that you prepared for me will satisfy me," Semiramis said as she sat down. Amakusa Shirou then opened the lid on the plate, revealing what was inside the lid.

"Galilee-style whole fried fish is the main dish for today, Semiramis," Amakusa Shirou said with a smile.

"I see...I wonder how it tastes?" Semiramis then grabbed a piece of the fish with her fork and took a bite. As she took a bite, she felt the taste going through her body, and it tasted good. As she finished her bite of the fish, she then looked at Amakusa Shirou. "This tastes good Shirou. The taste of this fish does go well in my mouth. I applaud you for your cooking."

"Why thank you Semiramis. Although I did have some help," Amakusa Shirou said as he took a piece of the fish.

"Really? Is it that friend of yours, Emiya Shirou?"

"Yes."

"I see. No matter, let's continue the meal."

Amakusa Shirou and Semiramis then continued their meal. While they were enjoying their meal, they talked about their time as master and servant during their days in the Great Holy Grail War. Eventually, they were done with the fish.

"So, anything else you want to show me?" Semiramis asked as she cleaned up her plate.

"Yes. That would be desert." Shirou then went into the corner and brought out one last plate, which was covered. As he brought it onto the plate, he then unraveled it, revealing a dish inside of it.

"This is the desert, Kunāfah. Hope you enjoy it," Amakusa Shirou said with a smile.

Semiramis smiled. "And I suppose that Shirou helped you with this as well?"

"Yes."

"I see...well then, guess your new friend seems to be quite skillful. Both in fighting and cooking."

"Yeah. He is quite the interesting fellow after all."

Amakusa Shirou and Semiramis then enjoyed the kunāfah as Amakusa Shirou cut the kunāfah into slices. As they did, a certain servant happened to be outside of the room, listening to the conversations they were having.

And that servant was William Shakespeare.

"So, it seems that Emiya Shirou has lend a hand for those two...he seems interesting, always helping anyone in need...maybe I should interview him later..." Shakespeare muttered to himself as he was writing the dinner date details on a piece of paper.


	47. Swapping Gender

"Bzz! Bzz!"

Shirou moaned as he heard his alarm clock from the nearby stand right next to his bed. He then raised his hand to proceed to turn it off. "Mnnnh...it's already morning?" Shirou thought to himself as he got out of bed. As he did, he then went into the bathroom to refresh himself for the morning.

However, when he was about to do so, he then looked in the mirror, and noticed something.

His face and hair looked different. His facial features looked more feminine and his hair was longer, reaching to the half of his back. Not only that, but his hands were small, the calluses gained from continuous practice, gone.

And that wasn't the end. When he looked down at himself, he noticed that his body has changed as well.

In which case, he now has the body of a female supermodel in which he has breasts that were noticeable along with the butt as well.

At that point, Shirou had one thought to himself.

_"WHAT IN THE ROOT IS THIS?!"_

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou sighed as he was walking in one of Chaldea's hallway with nearly everyone gazing at him. Right now, in order to adjust to his current situation, he was wearing the white kimono he was using as a cape of sort fully as his normal outfit shows his body off. "Jeez. Just how did I wake up to this? I mean, I haven't even done anything that would have an effect like this on me! Who or what did this to me?! I swear, I'm going to ask Da Vinci later to see if this is the result of one of her experiments..." he thought.

As Shirou was walking, he eventually stopped by the cafeteria...which included Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, Jaguar-man, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter.

And they were shocked when they saw Shirou in this state.

"SHIROU?!"

"EMIYA-KUN?!"

"SENPAI?!"

"ONII-CHAN?!"

"SHEROU?!"

"SHIROU?!"

"Shirou?!"

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

Shirou sighed as he heard the reactions from everyone that were in the cafeteria. "Well, guess I'm going to explain how I ended up like this now..." he thought as he entered the cafeteria. For a short while, there was silence in the air as everyone was in awe and were trying to process the sight in front of them.

Then one person decided to speak out.

"Um...Shirou...can you explain what has happened to you?" Kiritsugu asked.

"Well honestly...I don't know," Shirou replied as he sat down on a chair.

"But how though?! How did something like this happen to you?!" Jaguar-man asked dramatically.

"I don't know. All I remember is that I was normal last night, went to bed as usual, and suddenly, I wake up this morning as a girl! Honestly, I did not expect anything like this to happen!"

"I see. What did you do yesterday? There could be some clues in there over what could happen," Irisviel said.

"Hmm...I was practicing my swordsmanship in the training room. As I did, it was then that I took a break and went by to the rest area and grabbed my water bottle."

"I see. Was there anything suspicious about your water bottle?"

"Not quite actually. It tasted normal."

"Anything else?"

Shirou gave Irisviel's question a long thought. It was then that she realized something. "Now that you mentioned it, I did get a glimpse of Merlin nearby."

That immediately got Arturia and her counterparts riled up. "Merlin did you say?"

"Yeah. I did see Merlin nearby the area. However, when he saw me, he quickly left. Why?"

For a moment, there was an air of silence as Arturia and her counterparts were wondering why Merlin happened to be where Shirou was. As they were thinking about this issue, they realized something.

Merlin was behind this.

"MERLIN!" they all thought in unison.

"Um...Arturia?" Shirou asked.

However, it was then that Arturia and her counterparts immediately left the room, immediately surprising everyone.

"Arturia?!"

"Shirou! Me and my counterparts will be back soon! We just have to find Merlin for something!" Arturia said as she and her counterparts quickly left the cafeteria.

Shirou was dumbfounded for a moment. "What was that about?"

"Um Senpai, are you okay?" Parvati asked, snapping Shirou out of her thoughts.

"Y-Yeah. I'm just confused with what's going on here," Shirou replied.

"You're telling me. How is it that you were turned into a girl? And in a night never less?" Kama asked.

"Yeah. Although you do look cute like that," BB said with a smug grin on her face.

"A female senpai...that's new," Passionlip said.

"Yeah. Especially when he, or rather she, looks completely different than what I'm used to..." Meltlilith said.

"Wow...a female Senpai..." Kingprotea said in awe.

As Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters were looking in awe, Ishtar had a different reaction upon seeing Shirou as a girl. Shirou turned to see Ishtar and her rider counterpart looking at her in jealously.

"Um...Ishtar, are you alright?"

For a moment, she didn't say anything as she along with her rider counterpart continued looking at Shirou. Then she began to mutter something.

"It's not fair..." she muttered.

"Um...Ishtar, are you okay?" Shirou asked, unaware of the danger she was about to put herself in.

Ishtar then grabbed Shirou's shoulders and started to shake her quickly. "It's not fair! How is it that despite me becoming a goddess, my body hasn't changed?! You on the other hand, had yourself turned into a girl overnight by unknown means, and somehow gain a body of a supermodel! Especially one with a giant chest! It's not fair!" Ishtar ranted as she kept shaking Shirou over and over.

"Yeah! This is completely unfair! I want to have a chest like that too!" Rider Ishtar yelled as she joined her counterpart.

"I-Ishtar! Calm down!" Ereshkigal yelled nervously.

"Not now Ereshkigal! Not until I give Emiya-kun a piece of my mind!" Ishtar and her rider counterpart said in unison.

However, as Ishtar and her rider counterpart continued shaking Shirou, Astraea came in and stopped Ishtar and her rider counterpart from shaking Shirou even further.

"Stop it! Leave Sherou alone you useless flat-chested goddesses! Both of you are just jealous that Sherou's more beautiful than you now that he's a girl!" Astraea yelled.

"What was that Astraea!?" Ishtar yelled, turning her attention to Astraea.

"Hmph! Like I said-," Astraea said, but was cut off from Ishtar shooting a gem into her face. "Why you!" Astraea then began a fight with Ishtar and her counterpart as she shot a gem at Ishtar, but she dodged it, hitting Rider Ishtar.

"Hey! You bitch!" Rider Ishtar yelled as she launched herself at Astraea.

Soon, a war fight between Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Astraea began as all three of them started to fight against each other. As they were fighting, Ereshkigal was helping Shirou get up from the ground.

"Are you okay Emiya-kun?" Ereshkigal asked as she picked Shirou up from the ground.

"Y-Yeah. I think I'm fine. Thanks, Ereshkigal," Shirou replied.

"N-No problem..."

Meanwhile, Illya and her counterparts were talking among each other about Shirou's sudden gender change.

"So that's what onii-chan looks like as a girl..." Illya said.

"Yeah. I'll admit, he is beautiful..." Kuro said.

"I agree. Who's the one that turned him into like this?" Sitonai said.

"I don't know. Anyways, want to meet him?" Miyu asked.

"Yes!" Illya, Kuro, and Sitonai replied.

As Shirou got back up, Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu came up to her. "Um...onii-chan? No wait, um...should we call you onee-chan in this case?" Illya asked.

Shirou sighed. This was going to be complicated. "Well, in this case, I guess you would call me by that."

Kuro smirked. "Then...onee-chan!" she said as she suddenly gave Shirou a hug.

"Ah! Kuro! That's not fair! I want to hug onee-chan!" Sitonai said.

"Me too!" Miyu said.

"So do I!" Illya said.

"Hey! You snooze, you lose!" Kuro replied with a smug grin on her face.

Not wanting to be left out, Illya, Sitonai, and Miyu then all gave Shriou a giant hug. Meanwhile, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, and Kiritsugu were looking at Shirou's current condition, and were still stunned.

"Wow...you don't see this every day..." Kiritsugu said.

"I know right! My son is now a girl! I now have a cute and sexy daughter!" Iriviel exclaimed happily.

"This is weird, seeing Shirou like that..." Jaguar-man said.

As Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu continued hugging Shirou, he felt uncomfortable and felt the need for them to let go. "Um...Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu? Can all of you let go now? I need to head to the kitchen now," he asked.

"Yes!" they all said in unison as they let go of him.

Shirou sighed as she was released from her little sisters' hug. As they released her, Shirou then went to the kitchen, where EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were still stunned upon seeing Shirou.

However, before he could do so, Irisviel caught him in a hug.

"Wha-mom?!" Shirou said.

"Wah! Shirou, you look so amazing as a woman! You're so cute and sexy!" Irisviel replied happily.

"M-Mom! Let me go!"

"Never!" Irisviel said as she hugged him tighter.

Seeing how uncomfortable Shirou was, Kiritsugu went over to where Irisviel was and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Let go of Shirou now Iri. He's now uncomfortable from your hugging. And plus, he needs to get back to work. Okay?"

Irisviel pouted. "Fine..." she said as she let go of Shirou.

Shirou sighed. "Thanks, old man..."

"No problem," Kiritsugu replied as he dragged Irisviel away.

Soon, Shirou arrived at the kitchen where EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were waiting for him. They were still looking at him in shock.

"Well, you're going to get used to seeing me like this for a while..." Shirou said.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter sighed. "Just how do you keep getting yourself in these situations?" EMIYA asked.

"Yeah. It's quite ridiculous how you managed to get your gender changed like that overnight," EMIYA Alter said.

"I have no clue. Honestly, I thought both of you would know since both of you are me after all," Shirou replied.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter nearly flinched at what Shirou just said.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou sighed as he was trying to get used to the newfound attention he was receiving now. Earlier, when he was walking in the hallway, he received a lot of attention from the servants he would pass by.

Especially when some of them were servants that knew Shirou.

In Cu and his counterparts' case, they were amazed with how Shirou looked as a woman.

In Medusa and her counterparts' case, they were surprised with how Shirou looked as a woman, especially Medusa.

In Caster Medea's case, she somehow managed to get clothes appear out of nowhere and wanted to dress Shirou up, creeping him out immediately.

In Berserker Hercules's, he just roared.

In Sasaki Kojirou's case, he was complemented over his beauty.

In Gilgamesh and his counterparts' case...well...it didn't end so well...in which Archer Gilgamesh flirted with Shirou and trying to force himself on him without knowing who he was. And that ended in Shirou kicking Archer Gilgamesh right in the balls while the Caster and Kid counterparts looked at the event in disappointment.

In Nero and her counterparts' case, they commended him for his beauty despite turning into a woman.

In Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts' case, Jeanne D'Arc and her alter santa lily counterpart were surprised while Jeanne D'Arc Alter just laughed at his misfortune.

In Okita and her counterpart's case, they were amazed with how Shirou turned into a woman.

In Musashi's case, she was rather excited.

In Jack, Paul, Nursery, and Abigail's case, they were in awe over Shirou as a woman. Especially Jack since she didn't stop calling her mother. And she had somewhat of a legit reason.

In Arthur's case, he was surprised.

In Amakusa Shirou's case, he was surprised like Arthur.

In Hakuno's case, she was surprised.

In Scathach and her counterpart's case, they didn't care.

In Waver's case, he was shocked.

In Ritsuka and Mashu's cases, they were shocked.

In Da Vinci's case, she was excited as she wanted to know what/who did this.

Shirou sighed at the many interactions he had to go through during his time as a woman. "When will this end? This day has got weird ever since I've been turned into a girl by unknown means. Speaking of which, where is Arturia and her counterparts? I haven't seen them ever since I told them that Merlin was nearby. Where are they?" he thought.

As if on cue, Merlin then appeared in front of Shirou, running for his life as he was running from Arturia, her counterparts, and the Knights of the Round.

And he looked like he was scared.

"Queen Shirou! Please save me!" Merlin yelled in fear as he hid behind Shirou like a little kid.

"What the-Merlin?!" Shirou said as he was confused with the situation that was happening around him.

At that moment, Arturia, her counterparts, and the Knights of the Round finally caught up to Shirou and Merlin.

"Shirou/my queen/mother, please move out of the way," they all said in unison.

"Uh, why?" Shirou asked.

"Because it's Merlin's fault that you're in this condition!"

Shirou was shocked. "What?!"

"Yeah! Ask him! He's the one that made you like this!"

Shirou then turned to Merlin. "Merlin, what is the meaning of this?" he asked with an angry tone.

"Heh heh heh...well..." Merlin said.

"Answer me."

Merlin sighed as he now knew that there was no way getting out of this situation. "Okay, yes. I am the reason why Queen Shirou has been turned into a woman," Merlin admitted.

"How?"

"Well yesterday, I may have...swapped Shirou's water bottle with one that had a potion that turns people's gender into the opposite..."

"And why did you do it?" Arturia, her counterparts, and the Knights of the Round asked.

"Well...because I was bored?" Merlin asked with a nervous smile on his face.

At that moment, there was silence in the room as everyone was quiet after hearing Merlin's answer. For a moment, Merlin thought he was safe from any punishment.

However, Arturia and her counterparts had something else to say.

"Should we unleash him?" Arturia asked.

"Yes," her counterparts said.

"I agree," the Knights of the Round said in unison.

"Great. Bedivere?"

Bedivere nodded and soon left the hallway. For a moment, Shirou and Merlin were confused with why Bedivere suddenly left the hallway. After a few minutes, he came back.

With Fou in tow.

"Uh oh," Merlin said, knowing what was going to happen next.

In an instant, Fou launched himself from Bedivere and immediately kicked Merlin in the face. "Die Merlin, Foooouuu!" Merlin was launched back by the force of Fou's kick and landed into the ground. Soon, Fou began to tackle Merlin, and the two engaged in a fight.

As Fou and Merlin were fighting amongst each other, Arturia, her counterparts, and the Knights of the Round began talking to Shirou.

"Are you okay Shirou?" Arturia asked.

"Y-Yeah. I think I'm going to be fine. What about Merlin though?" Shirou replied.

"Eh. He'll live," Arturia Alter said.

"Yeah. This is payback," Arturia Lily said.

"Not only for you, but the number of pranks he pulled on all of us," Lancer Arturia said.

"And plus, he's already beaten by Fou so many times. Something like this wouldn't kill him," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"That's right," Ruler Arturia said.

"Is that so? How long will it take until Fou stopped beating up Merlin?" Shirou asked.

"Honestly, I have no clue," Archer Arturia said.

"Yeah. Every time when Fou and Merlin meet, it always ends with Fou kicking Merlin in the face," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"Yeah. And we don't even know how long until the beating takes," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Not only that, but we also don't know where the beating takes place," Mysterious Heroine X said.

"So, either way, we just let Fou kick his ass," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Exactly," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

"I see...and all of you are okay with Fou beating up Merlin?" Shirou asked.

"Yes. It shames me to say this, but it feels refreshing to see Merlin getting beat up like that," Gawain said.

"Exactly. The many times he pulled pranks on all of us...it just haunts all of us to no end," Lancelot said.

"And the aftermath of the all...was just too painful..." Tristan muttered.

"Even I couldn't bear with some of Merlin's pranks..." Bedivere said.

"As do I..." Gareth said.

"So mother, if you're worried about Merlin, don't worry. He's used to dealing with this every day," Mordred said.

"I see..." Shirou said as he returned looking at Fou still beating up Merlin.

"Ow! Get off me Cath Palug!" Merlin yelled.

"Fou!" Fou replied.

As Merlin and Fou continued fighting among each other, Arturia then called out Merlin. "Hey teacher, would you mind giving the cure to Shirou now? If you do, I'll tell Fou to stop."

"Tch...fine! Just get Cath Palug off me!" Merlin groaned as he was punched by Fou in the face.

"Good. Shirou? Would you call Fou here?"

"Uh...okay. Fou, come over here," Shirou said.

Upon hearing Shirou's voice, Fou stopped beating Merlin and headed towards where Shirou was. Shirou kneeled so Fou can grab onto him. As he did, Fou easily climbed up to Shirou's shoulder. Merlin then got up from the beating and pulled out something from his pocket.

"Here Queen Shirou. Here's the antidote to the situation you are in now," Merlin said as he showed Shirou a small red vital. Shirou then grabbed the vital from Merlin's hand and then drank it. As he did, he felt a change going through his body as he felt that his body was turning back to normal.

At that moment, Shirou returned to normal. "Phew. Well, guess everything is back to normal now."

"Yeah. Well...except for Merlin here," Mordred said as she, Shirou, Fou, the rest of the Knights of the Round, Arturia, and her counterparts looked at the poor state Merlin was in from the beating Merlin was in.

"You can say that again..." Shirou said.

"I know right? By the way mother."

"Hm? What is it Mordred?"

"To be honest, when we all heard that you were turned into a woman by Merlin, a part me of wished that you would stay like that for a while."

Shirou was confused. "Why?"

"So that way I won't get any stares when I call you mother," Mordred jokingly said.

Shirou sighed. "Really?"

"Yeah. Also, it's also glad that we found Merlin first, or else Lancelot would have gone after you by mistake."

Lancelot felt insulted by what Mordred just said to him. "Hey!"

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

EMIYA was waking up in his room, minding his own business. As he did, he noticed something.

His arms were smaller.

"What the heck? Why did my arms turn smaller? Wait. Does that mean...?!"

In an instant, EMIYA went into the bathroom to check on himself. As he did, he was in shock upon seeing himself in the mirror

He was a woman now.

_"WHAT THE HELL?! HOW DID I GET INTO THE SAME SITUATION AS MY YOUNGER COUNTERPART?! THIS IS EVEN WORSE THAN THAT DEAL I MADE WITH ALAYA! WAIT, DOES THAT MEAN-?!"_

_(Meanwhile...)_

"You've got to be kidding me! What the hell is this?! This is even worse than that deal I made with Kiara!" Emiya Alter thought as he looked at the mirror where he, like EMIYA, was turned into a woman.


	48. Date

"Phew! Mission complete!" Ritsuka said as he, Mashu, and Saber Arturia returned to Chaldea by rayshifting. As they arrived at Chaldea's summoning room, Arturia let out a huge sigh.

"Hm? Arturia-san, are you okay?" Mashu asked.

"Hm? Oh. Yeah, I'm fine Mashu," Arturia replied.

"Are you sure? It looks like you don't look so good," Ritsuka said.

"Don't worry, I'm fine master. Anyways, I need to go to the cafeteria now. Do you mind if I go there?"

"No. You can go now."

"Thank you master." Arturia then left for the cafeteria immediately. As she left, Ritsuka and Mashu were left alone in Chaldea's summoning room.

"Do you think I may be overworking Arturia a bit lately today?" Ritsuka asked.

"Why do you think so senpai?" Mashu replied.

"Well lately, she's been forcing herself to work harder. And there were times where I would see her not taking a break during any of the time where we would take a break."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. What do you think is the problem with Arturia's recent behavior?"

For a moment, Ritsuka and Mashu were pondering with the question that they came up with. As they did, they were thinking of any reason why Arturia was acting like this lately, and they weren't able to think of an answer.

It was then that a certain servant popped out of nowhere.

"Hello!" the servant said from behind Ritsuka and Mashu.

Ritsuka and Mashu jumped upon hearing the servant's voice behind their backs. As they turned around to see who said that, it was Merlin. "Merlin?! Jeez, where did you come from?!" Ritsuka asked in surprise.

"From behind you. Isn't that obvious?" Merlin replied with a smile on his face.

Ritsuka sighed. "I'll never understand Merlin and what's he up to..."

"Anyway, what seems to be the problem master?"

"Well...it's about your old student, Arturia," Ritsuka replied.

"Which one?"

"The original. We think there's something wrong with her lately."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, lately, Arturia-san had been working herself a bit too much lately. Not only that, but the look on her face says that she's worried about something. Do you have any idea what that means Merlin-san?" Mashu asked.

Merlin then gave Mashu's question a long thought. "Hm...my student seems to be revisiting her old habits again...but for what? She doesn't sound like she's in a bad mood, and she's already moved on. So, what is it that is making her revisit her old habits like this..."

As Merlin continued thinking, a thought just came to his head.

"Hey master, can I ask you a question?" Merlin asked Ritsuka.

"Uh...sure. What is it?" Ritsuka replied.

"When was the last time Arturia has spent any time with Shirou?"

"Hm...probably a few days ago, I guess? Why?"

Merlin let out a sigh. "Shirou. I swear, you have a factor that most teenage boys would kill to get. And that factor would be the chick magnet factor. I don't know how you do it, but you somehow manage to attract girls like moths to a flame. Just how though? You're making me even jealous, and it's not even on purpose..." he thought.

"Merlin-san?" Mashu said, snapping Merlin out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing. Anyways, I may have an idea on what's making my student like that," Merlin replied.

"Really? What is it then?" Ritsuka asked.

Merlin took a deep breath before saying his answer. "It's Shirou."

Ritsuka and Mashu were confused when they heard Merlin's answer. "Shirou-san? But why though? Did he and Arturia-san had a fight earlier?" Mashu asked.

"No."

"Then what is it then? How is Shirou related to this?" Ritsuka asked.

"Well, to be frank with both of you, it's been a while since Arturia has spent some "alone time" with Shirou. My guess is that my student may be a bit jealous from the attention Shirou has been getting recently and is probably venting her frustrations with the use of battle," Merlin replied.

"Is that so?" Mashu asked.

"Yes."

"Well, at least we now know the reason behind Arturia's recent behavior. Now what are we going to do?" Ritsuka asked.

Merlin smiled. "Oh, don't worry. I have a plan, and I need you two to make this plan work," he said with a smirk on his face.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ritsuka and Mashu went into the cafeteria, hoping to see the two people that they need to see. As they arrived at the cafeteria, they sighed in relief as they saw both Shirou and Arturia together alone.

"Whew. We found them," Ritsuka whispered to Mashu.

"Yes. Now we should enact the plan Merlin has for us," Mashu whispered back to Ritsuka.

"Yeah. Hope this will work..."

Soon, Ritsuka and Mashu went into the cafeteria. As they did, they immediately went up to Shirou and Arturia, who were enjoying their meal together. Shirou and Arturia then noticed Ritsuka and Mashu coming up to him.

"Hm? Oh, hey master," Shirou said.

"Hi master," Arturia said.

"Hey there Shirou-san, Arturia-san," Mashu said.

"So master, what brings you here?" Shirou asked Ritsuka.

"Well...we have both a favor and an order for the both of you," Ritsuka replied.

Shirou and Arturia were confused upon hearing Ritsuka's request. "What kind of order do you have for the both of us master?" Shirou asked.

"Well...the order I have for the both of you...is for both of you to go on a date for the entirety of tomorrow."

Shirou and Arturia were silent for a moment upon hearing Ritsuka's request. Ritsuka and Mashu then checked on them to see if they were okay. "Uh...Shirou-san? Arturia-san? Are you two okay?"

"Y-Yeah. I'm surprised to hear such an order from you, master," Shirou said.

"Well, to be fair...this wasn't my idea. This was Merlin's."

Arturia sighed upon hearing that this was Merlin's plan. "Really? Merlin again? I swear, I will never understand him and his actions."

"You can say that again," Ritsuka said.

Shirou sighed. "Anyways, why did Merlin tell both of you this?"

"Well, he came up with this plan because he wanted to reward the both of you for your continuous work here," Mashu said.

"I see," Arturia said.

"Anyways, have fun with your date tomorrow!" Ritsuka said as he left with Mashu in tow, leaving Shirou and Arturia alone in the cafeteria.

For a moment, there was silence between the two as they were processing the information they just received.

"So...a date huh?" Shirou said.

"Yeah..." Arturia replied as her memory of her first date with Shirou still lingers in her mind. "How do you think it should start?"

Shirou smiled. "The way you want it Arturia."

Arturia smiled back. "I'll get my casual outfit then."

"As you wish. When do you want to meet?"

"Hm...how about 9 am? In front of your room?"

"Sounds good to me."

"Great."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Inside of Shirou's room, Shirou was preparing himself for his date with Arturia. "Man. It's been a while since I've ever gone on a date with Arturia. Especially since our last date together ended with Gilgamesh interrupting us...and him trying to kill me and take Arturia for himself..." Shirou thought as he was choosing an outfit to wear for his date with Arturia. "Okay, now which outfit should I wear today?" he said to himself as he looked at the many clothes he has in his closet. Some of which were handpicked by Nero and her counterparts themselves while others were the various mystic codes Da Vinci had him test them out for.

After a few minutes of thinking which outfit to wear for the date, Shirou finally made a conclusion.

"Guess I'll go with this outfit," Shirou thought with a smile as he looked at the first mystic code Da Vinci had created for him to test out, which happened to be his casual clothes from his time as a human. Shirou then put the mystic code on. "It still fits."

Shirou then got his outfit into place, closed his closet doors, and proceeded to leave his room. As he did, he was greeted with Arturia waiting outside of the door in front of him.

Who was wearing the same outfit she wore during her time as Shirou's servant.

"You ready Shirou?" Arturia asked.

"Yes," Shirou replied with a smile.

"Great. Let's go then."

Shirou and Arturia soon started walking down the hallway towards the mini mall in Chaldea. As they did, they were met with various gazes from the other servants that would pass by them.

Eventually, the couple arrived at the mini-mall. "So Arturia, where do you want to go first?" Shirou asked.

"Hm...well, let's go over there first," Arturia replied as she pointed at a clothes/mystic code store.

"Okay then. Let's go."

Shirou and Arturia then went into the clothes/mystic code store. As they did, they went inside there to look at the designs of the various clothes/mystic codes that were being sold there.

"Welcome! Please feel free to unfold them any of them for a closer look!" the store clerk said. Shirou and Arturia then took a look at each clothes/mystic codes that was being sold in the store. As time passed, Shirou and Arturia kept looking at the clothes/mystic codes.

"Hey Shirou, try this on," Arturia said as she showed him some clothes she wanted him to wear.

"Hm? These clothes?" Shirou replied.

"Yeah."

"All right. Let me go into the changing room for a moment," Shirou said as he took the clothes from Arturia and headed into the changing room. As he did, he unfolded the clothes to get a better look at them. The clothes Arturia brought him was a black coat, a red shirt, and black jeans. Shirou then put the clothes on.

"Shirou? Are you done in there?" Arturia asked.

"Almost. Just give me a moment," Shirou replied.

"All right."

After a few seconds of waiting, Shirou was finally done with the outfit Arturia had gave him. Shirou then opened the door for Arturia to see. "Well, how do I look?" Shirou asked.

Arturia smiled. "You look great Shirou."

"You think so?"

"Yeah."

"I see. Do you want to buy them?"

"Yes."

"Okay then, let's buy them."

Soon, Shirou and Arturia bought the clothes and soon left the shop. "Now then, where do you want to go to next?" Shirou asked.

"Hm...how about over there?" Arturia asked as she pointed to a batting range.

"Okay."

Soon, Shirou and Arturia headed towards the batting range. As they paid up at the counter, they went to their assigned lanes. As they did, they put on baseball helmets that were nearby and brought over the nearby bats.

"Are you ready Shirou?"

"Yeah."

"Good, because I won't go easy on you," Arturia said with a smirk on her face.

"A competition?" Shirou asked.

"Well...you could say that."

Shirou smirked. "Bring it."

And then the machine soon started throwing baseballs at them, prompting Shirou and Arturia to swing them back. As time passed, both of them swung at each baseball, not letting one go past them. Between the number of balls they kept hitting, they were tied, neck to neck.

Eventually, both Shirou and Arturia were on the last ball, and they were exhausted with the amount of swinging they did.

"Hah...well Arturia, this is the final ball..." Shirou said.

"Yes Shirou...this will decide who will be the winner...you ready for this?" Arturia replied.

Shirou smirked. "Yeah."

"Okay then...let's finish this!"

Shirou and Arturia soon went into their batting positions. As they did, they waited for the last ball in their lanes to appear. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then in an instant, a baseball appeared in each of their lane, heading straight towards them.

"Here it comes!" they thought in unison.

As the balls came closer to them, both of them swung their ball at the same time. When they did, both of their balls went straight up into the sky, hitting the fence upon impact.

It was then that the score for the last swing appeared in front of them at the scoreboard.

And the result was a tie between the two.

Both of them were silent for a moment upon seeing the scoreboard, and they then started to laugh over how they ended their game.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Arturia let out a sigh as she sat down on a bench as she was waiting for Shirou. "Well, today was quite fun. Me and Shirou bought new clothes, went to the batting range, and had some food together, although the food quality was not as good as Shirou's...but still good. For once, I should thank Merlin for giving me this opportunity, even though his way can be unorthodox..."

As Arturia was thinking about her day with Shirou, Shirou then came in with two ice cream cones in his hands. "Want some ice cream Arturia?"

"Hm? Ah, thanks," Arturia replied as she grabbed an ice cream cone from one of Shirou's hands. She then took a bite from her ice cream.

"Well? How is it?" Shirou asked.

Arturia smiled. "It's good Shirou."

Shirou smiled back. "Glad that you like it."

Shirou and Arturia continued eating their ice cream together. As they did, Arturia decided to say something to Shirou.

"You know, it's been a while since we've done something like this," Arturia said.

"Yeah. Considering with how much work there is in Chaldea lately, I'm glad that master told us to take a break occasionally, although it was under Merlin's orders," Shirou replied.

"You can say that again. I will never understand Merlin..."

"And neither will I. By the way Arturia."

"Hm? What is it Shirou?"

"You got some ice cream on your face," Shirou said as he pointed at Arturia's face, where there was a speck of ice cream on her face.

"Hm? Oh, just let me-"

However, before Arturia could even wipe it off, Shirou grabbed a napkin out of nowhere and wiped it off from her. "There. That spot should be clean now."

Arturia slightly blushed from Shirou's action. "T-Thanks."

"No problem."

Shirou and Arturia continued their date. As they were chatting among with each other, a certain servant was watching nearby.

It was Merlin, and he was satisfied with the results as he watched them with a smile on his face.

_"Well then...guess my plan was a success. My student doesn't have any more pent-up frustration inside of her and she's reverted to her normal self. Now, I'll just let those two be together and-"_

However, before he could, he felt someone touching his shoulder. As he turned around, he was horrified with what he saw.

Arturia's counterparts. And they did not look happy.

"Merlin, what is the meaning of this?" Arturia's counterparts asked.

"Um...I'm just looking after my old student?" Merlin replied nervously. For a moment, there was silence between them.

Then Arturia's counterparts said something. "That plan of yours...we want in on it as well."

"Wait. You don't mean..."

"Yes. We all want a date with Shirou as well. Each of us."


	49. Trouble with Gilgamesh

"Haaahhh..." Hakuno moaned as she was walking in Chaldea's hallway. Right now, she was exhausted after dealing with another of Archer Gilgamesh's antics earlier. "Jeez, he still is the same even after he left the Moon Cell and ended up in Chaldea. Honestly, I'm even wondering how I managed to be his master all this time while surviving the Moon Cell Holy Grail War..." she thought as she continued walking in the hallway. As she was walking, she came across the cafeteria, where she felt like her worries and stress would disappear upon getting some food. "Well, guess I'll eating something to calm myself down..." she thought.

Hakuno then went into the cafeteria. As she did, she noticed Shirou was in the kitchen, making something. "Hey Shirou," she said, grabbing Shirou's attention.

"Hm? Oh, hey Hakuno. Are you hungry or something?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah. I need something to help me clear my mind."

"Is there something wrong?"

"Well...let's just say...I'm having trouble dealing with a certain servant..." Hakuno said as she sat down on a chair at a nearby table.

"Really? Who?"

Hakuno sighed again. "Gilgamesh."

Shirou was surprised at what Hakuno just said. "Really? Him?"

"Yeah."

Shirou sighed. "All right, what did he do?"

"Well...let's just say, he did something that was really embarrassing that I don't ever want to see again."

"Really? What did he do?"

Hakuno was silent for a moment. Then she said her answer.

"He unleashed A.U.O cast off in front of me."

Shirou was confused upon hearing Hakuno's answer. "A.U.O cast off? What's that?"

"Well...from what I heard, it's a way for him to cut loose and hear the "lovely voices of miserable girls" that are "an instrument to be played by the king." What he does is that he...well, exposes his body."

Shirou nearly dropped the pan he was holding and yelled, "What?! You got to be kidding me!"

"I know Shirou, but as much as I don't want to admit or even think about it, that is the truth right there."

"So wait, he just strips down naked?"

"Yeah."

Shirou was shocked for a moment. "Okay, this is new. I can't believe that Gilgamesh has something like that. I mean, come on! He's practically stripping himself naked over there! There's no practical use in using that! In fact, what does he even do with that?!" he thought.

"Um Shirou? Are you okay?" Hakuno said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Y-Yeah. Sorry Hakuno, I was just shocked over how ridiculous that skill is. I mean, a skill that is just him stripping down naked? That's something unheard of."

"You're telling me. The first time I ever saw him use that skill, I thought he was joking."

"Yeah. Anyways, what do you want to eat Hakuno?"

"Hm...something spicy I guess."

"I see. Give me a moment to check what we have in the fridge and I cook something up, okay?"

"Sure."

Shirou then went into the fridge to see what he can cook up. As he checked the fridge, what he saw in the fridge was Korean-style rice cakes, Korean-rectangular fish cakes, cabbage, carrots, onions, spicy red bean paste, leftover anchovy broth, and ketchup. "Hm, with these ingredients in the fridge, I can make Korean-style spicy rice cakes. Hope Hakuno likes this." Shirou then grabbed the ingredients out of the fridge and placed them on the counter.

Shirou then defrosted the rice cakes in cold water while preparing the other ingredients. He then sliced the cabbage, carrots, and onions into pieces. He then grabbed a nearby saute pan that was deep enough to hold all of the ingredients and added in the anchovy broth, carrots, cabbage, and onions to the pan and brought it to a boil. Shirou then added gochujang, garlic soy sauce, salt, and sugar to the mixture and waited for it to boil.

Meanwhile, Hakuno was waiting for Shirou to be done with what he was cooking. As she was waiting, she smelled the aroma of the sauce mixture, and it was making her hungry upon how good it smelled. "Wow. That smells good. I wonder what's he making now..."

It was just then that another person came into the room. "Hakuno?"

Hakuno turned around to see who the source of the voice was. As she did, she saw Ritsuka. "Hey there master."

"Hey Hakuno. What are you doing here?" Ritsuka asked as he sat down next to Hakuno.

"Well. I'm waiting for Shirou to be done cooking what he's preparing," Hakuno replied. "Want to join me?"

"Sure. I don't mind."

"Great. Hey Shirou, master just came in. Do you mind if you add another plate?"

"Sure. I don't mind," Shirou replied as he was looking at the pan.

"Great." Hakuno then continued to wait for the food to be ready. As she did, Ritsuka then started a conversation between him and her.

"Hey Hakuno. How are you doing at Chaldea? Is everything okay here with you?" Ritsuka asked.

"Well, I'm doing okay here. At first, everything seems to be a bit uneasy, but I got used to it. I'll admit though, there a few things I did not expect to see here in Chaldea."

"Really? And what that would be?"

"Well, the fact that there are so many counterparts of certain servants. Especially since some of those servants may have the same face as well."

"I see. Which counterpart surprised you the most?"

"Well...I would say...the fact that the Caster and Kid counterparts of Gilgamesh act differently from the one I summoned back in the Moon Cell."

"Really? How so?"

"Simple. Less arrogant."

Ritsuka chuckled at Hakuno's statement. "You aren't wrong about that..."

Meanwhile, Shirou was still in the process of cooking the sauce. He kept stirring the mixture until it was consistent. After he was done stirring, he then added in the rice cakes and cooked them for eight minutes. Then he added the fish cakes, vegetables, and kept stirring them until all of them were soft for five minutes. Afterwards, he garnished them with some green onions and sesame seeds and served them on three plates.

"Okay master, Hakuno. Lunch is ready!" Shirou said as he was done plating them. Shirou then brought them out to Ritsuka and Hakuno. As he handed them out to both of them, Hakuno was in awe over what Shirou made for her and Ritsuka.

"Wow. This looks amazing. Shirou, what is this?" Hakuno asked.

"It's tteok-bokki, which is Korean-style rice cakes stir-fried in a spicy sauce," Shirou replied. "Hope both of you enjoy it."

Ritsuka smiled and turned to Hakuno. "Well, try it out."

"R-Right. Thanks for the meal." Hakuno then grabbed a fork, stabbed a rice cake along with a fish cake, and took a bite of it. As she did, she tasted how spicy it was, along with how good it was.

"Well?" Shirou asked.

"It's good. Better than the Mapo Tofu I used to have in the Moon Cell. And that's saying something."

"Really?"

"Yeah. You are a better cook than that Kotomine Kirei fellow over there."

For a moment, Shirou was shocked upon hearing Kotomine Kirei from Hakuno's mouth and began choking on a rice cake he ate earlier. Noticing this, Ritsuka quickly went to the kitchen to get a glass a water to help Shirou. After he got the glass of water, he gave it to Shirou, in which Shirou drank quickly.

"Um...Shirou, are you all right?" Hakuno asked.

"Y-Yeah. I'm just surprised..." Shirou replied as he finished drinking his water. "So...there's a Kotomine Kirei in the Moon Cell as well?"

"Yes. He exists in your world as well?"

"Yeah. Is he a priest over there?"

"Nope. He's a commissary keeper where I buy my items from. He is also the attendant at Tsukuyomi Onsen."

Upon hearing this, Shirou was even more shocked. "Really?! Kirei's a commissary keeper in the Moon Cell where Hakuno comes from?! Also, attendant at the Tsukuyomi Onsen?! What is that?!" he thought.

"Um Shirou? You're spacing out again," Ritsuka said.

"Hm? Oh, sorry master. I'm just...a bit shocked after hearing this."

"Is that so? Was the Kotomine Kirei in your universe was different from Hakuno's?"

"Yeah. In my universe, Kotomine Kirei was the supervisor of the Fifth Fuyuki Holy Grail War. Not only that, but apparently, he was the master of the assassin-class servant of the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War despite being in the church."

This time, it was Hakuno's turn to be surprised by what Shirou just said. "Wow. So that's your universe's version of Kotomine Kirei...speaking of which, what was he like?"

"Well...he was a sadistic priest who wanted to see the suffering of others."

"Wow. That sounds similar to my version of Kotomine Kirei."

"Is that so? Hakuno, can I ask you something?" Shirou asked as he wanted to check something.

"Sure. What is it?"

"By any chance, was there a Tohsaka Rin in your universe?"

"Yeah. Why? Does she exist in your universe as well?"

"Yes."

"I see. If that's the case, then does the person known as Matou Shinji exists in your world as well?"

"Yes."

"Wow. This may sound crazy, but I'm now starting to think that the Moon Cell was based off from your world Shirou. Well, if that's possible."

"Yeah. It sounds like both of your worlds are similar, yet different at the same time," Ritsuka said.

"You can say that again. By the way master," Shirou said.

"What is it Shirou?"

"I hope that there is no Kotomine Kirei here in this universe."

Ritsuka chuckled at what Shirou said. "Relax. I think there isn't."

"I hope so..."

Shirou, Hakuno, and Ritsuka then continued their meal together. As they did, they had multiple chats about parts of their lives, Chaldea, and much more.

It was then that Hakuno asked Shirou a certain question.

"Hey Shirou. Can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well...why does Gilgamesh hate you? That's been on my mind for quite a while," Hakuno asked as she took a piece of her rice cakes into her mouth. For a moment, Shirou and Ritsuka were silent, making Hakuno confused upon seeing their reactions. "Um...are you two okay?"

"Hm? Oh yeah. Just thinking about something," Shirou said.

"Y-Yeah. Me too. Why did you ask that question Hakuno?" Ritsuka asked.

"Well lately, every time when Gilgamesh would hear a servant talking about Shirou, his mood goes sour and he gets slightly angry. Not only that, but when a servant praises Shirou, he punches a wall or scares the said servant. Do you have any idea why?"

"Well...I can think of four reasons why he hates me. Do you want to hear them?"

Hakuno nodded.

"Well, one reason would be the fact that I completely, as Ritsuka would say, roasted him by calling him a mongrel in front of his face."

Hakuno was surprised at what Shirou admitted. "Really?! You called him a mongrel in front of his face?!"

"Yeah. I mean, considering what his heritage is and what the word meant, he is one."

"Well true, but still...I can't believe you called him the very word he kept calling other people..." Hakuno said.

"Me too. When I heard about this, I was shocked as well," Ritsuka said.

"I see. Any other reasons?"

"Hm...there may be that other time where I had a practice match against him and the end result was not good for him," Shirou said.

"You mean the time where you beat his greatest treasure with your noble phantasm?" Hakuno asked, surprising Shirou and Ritsuka.

"You knew?" Ritsuka said.

"Yeah. BB told me about it. She told me how you beat him along with his greatest treasure with one of your noble phantasms. Not only that, but she also told me how you cut him arm off."

"I see. However, that event has a side effect that I did not expect..."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, news about my victory against Gilgamesh was spread throughout Chaldea, which gave me a lot of recognition among the servants here. I've even received some names along with my noble phantasm too."

"Is that so?" Hakuno said as she continued eating. "Anything else?"

"Well...this one may not be directed not at me, but rather Muramasa..." Shirou replied.

"Muramasa? You mean the spirit of the blacksmith that is currently residing inside your body now?"

"Yeah."

"Then that means you're talking about the time where you allowed him to possess your body and he punched him so hard, he flew to the ceiling and was stuck there for a while, correct?"

"Oh yeah. I remember that event. It was surprising to see Gilgamesh hanging on the ceiling," Ritsuka said.

"Yeah. Not to mention the aftermath of that event..." Shirou muttered.

"What happened?" Hakuno asked.

"Well, from what I heard, Merlin and Cu had copies of the punch and showed them to other servants, and the rest is...well, history."

"I see. And the last reason?"

Shirou took a sigh before answering Hakuno's question. "It's because we were enemies in the Fifth Fuyuki Holy Grail War where I came from."

Hakuno was shocked. "Really? You two were enemies during your world's Holy Grail War?"

"Yeah. And furthermore, because of my magecraft, he can't stand my existence in general, along with my future counterparts as well."

"Is that so..."

"Yeah. And that's the many reasons why Gilgamesh really hates me. So yeah, sorry if he's causing you trouble because of me."

"Nah. I got used to dealing with Gilgamesh's antics during my time with him in the Moon Cell. But thanks for asking."

"Your welcome. Although can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well, how is it that you were able to deal with Gilgamesh as your servant? I mean, with his arrogance and all."

"Yeah. I want to know as well," Ritsuka said.

Hakuno smirked. "Well, let's just say...I like a certain food that he fears..."

Meanwhile, Archer Gilgamesh shuddered, not knowing what came over him.


	50. A New Saber-Face

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the Caster Arturia chapter you guys have been wanting! Don't worry, Proto Merlin will get her time soon...
> 
> Anyways, hope all of you enjoyed it!

Today was the day Ritsuka would do his daily summoning at the summoning alter, in which he would drop his hard-earned saint quartz onto the alter and hope that he could summon a good servant.

"Hm...wonder what will I get for today's daily summoning? Last time I got a Caster-class servant named Hakuno Kishinami who happened to be the former master of Saber Nero, Caster Tamamo, Archer Gilgamesh, and another servant named Nameless who happened to be a variant of EMIYA who looks exactly like him, but with a different origin," Ritsuka thought as he placed the saint quartz onto the summoning alter.

It was then that Mashu came into the room. "Senpai?"

"Hm? Oh, hey Mashu," Ritsuka said as he turned around to see her.

"Senpai, are you planning on summoning another servant today?"

"Yeah. After all, today is my daily day for summoning servants, and it's been a while since I summoned someone. Want to see the results?"

"Sure. I don't mind," Mashu replied.

Ritsuka smiled. "Great. Now, let's see what today will bring me..."

Ritsuka and Mashu then looked at the summoning alter together. As they were looking at the alter, the alter lit up, temporarily blinding the two from how bright the light was. The saint quartz then disappeared, then formed into multiple blue orbs. Then the blue orbs started to connect with each other and turned into a ring of blue sparks swirling around. Then the ring split into three and continued to swirl around.

As the light faded, it revealed a gold card showing a robed old man wearing a hood with a long beard holding a staff while carrying a book at the same time. The card then disappeared as a girl appeared.

However, Ritsuka and Mashu received a surprise upon seeing the girl.

Because the girl looked like Arturia Lily, but she was wearing an outfit that looked like a school uniform from a private school along with a hat as well. Not only that, but she wasn't carrying Excalibur or Rhongomyniad. Instead, she was carrying a staff that looked like the one Merlin was carrying, and yet different at the same time. On her back was a short sword of sort.

"Hello there! I'm called Arturia, a caster! To tell you the truth, I don't really get this servant thing. But, if mere magecraft can be of help to you, then please make use of it as much as you wish."

Ritsuka and Mashu were surprised with the new servant's introduction. "Y-Yeah. Hello Arturia, my name is Ritsuka. And over here is Mashu."

"H-Hi Arturia," Mashu said. "Anyways, welcome to Chaldea."

"Chaldea? Is that a name of an organization?"

"Yes. Chaldea is an organization that prevents the extinct of humanity by going into singularities and fixes them."

"I see. Anyways, pleasure to meet you master! I hope that my magecraft can support you as much as you wish."

"Um...Arturia, you don't have to say that you know..."

"Why?"

"Well...magecraft here is actually rare here..." Ritsuka said.

Caster Arturia was surprised upon hearing Ritsuka's words. "Eh? Magecraft isn't "piddling"? Whoa... is that the case in this world?"

"Yeah. So...magecraft here may be different than what you are used to..."

"I see..."

It was then that a certain servant came into the room. And that servant was Saber Arturia. "Hey master, Da Vinci needs to ask...you...for something..." Arturia said as she slowly stopped saying upon seeing her Caster counterpart.

And like her Saber counterpart, Caster Arturia was shocked to see her Saber counterpart in front of her.

"No way..." Saber Arturia muttered as she pointed at her Caster counterpart.

"Um...master, am I going crazy, or am I seeing another version of me over there?" Caster Arturia asked.

Ritsuka nervously laughed at Caster Arturia's question. "Well, you're not going crazy. The person in front of you is well...you, from an alternate timeline that is different from yours."

"I-I see..."

"Um...this may feel a bit awkward to both of you, but...Arturia-san, how about you meet your Caster counterpart for a bit?"

"Y-Yeah." Saber Arturia then went up to her Caster counterpart and greeted her. "Hello Caster me," Saber Arturia said with a smile.

"Ah. H-Hello to you too," Caster Arturia said.

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Anyways, Arturia."

"Yes master?" Saber and Caster Arturia asked in unison.

Ritsuka sighed again. "Here we go again..."

"Senpai was referring to the Saber Arturia," Mashu said.

"Oh. Sorry," Caster Arturia apologized.

"It's okay. Anyways, what is it master?" Saber Arturia asked Ritsuka.

"You said that Da Vinci needs me for something correct?"

"Yes."

"Well anyways, would you mind giving your caster counterpart a tour of Chaldea?"

"Sure. I don't mind."

"Great. Now if you will excuse me, I need to head for Da Vinci's room," Ritsuka said as he soon left the room.

"W-Wait up senpai!" Mashu said as she followed Ritsuka, leaving Saber and Caster Arturia alone in the room.

"So...should we move on then?" Caster Arturia asked.

Saber Arturia smiled. "I guess so."

Soon, Saber and Caster Arturia soon left the summoning room and Saber Arturia proceeded to give of Chaldea. As she did, Caster Arturia was amazed with how many rooms and facilities Chaldea possess.

"Wow. To think that there were this many rooms in here..." Caster Arturia said in awe.

"Yeah. It's natural to have this reaction to Chaldea here. The first time I was summoned here, I was surprised with the amount of rooms here," Saber Arturia replied.

"I can see that. What's that room over there?" Caster Arturia asked as she pointed at a room.

"That room? Ah, that room is one of the recreational rooms in which servants would go over there to take a break and relax or something," Saber Arturia said as they were walking. As they continued walking, Saber Arturia asked her Caster counterpart a question.

"So...um Caster me, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Just how are things different in your world and mine?"

"Well, in your world, I assumed you were chosen by the sword of selection and pulled it from the stone, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, in my world, I didn't pull the sword from the stone. Instead, I was chosen by the staff of selection."

"Is that so?"

"Yup. And ever since then, I've been studying magecraft under Merlin's tutelage."

Arturia was slightly shocked upon hearing Caster Arturia's words. "You trained under Merlin in magecraft?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well...nothing. Anyways, let's move on."

Saber Arturia soon continued giving her Caster counterpart the tour. As she did, some thoughts came into her mind. "Really? Merlin taught my Caster counterpart magecraft? Well, at least she's acting like my Lily counterpart. I hope Merlin didn't teach her anything suspicious..." she thought.

As they were, it was then that Arturia and her Caster counterpart came across a certain group of servants.

The Knights of the Round, along with Merlin.

"Hm? My king?" Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth said as they noticed both Saber and Caster Arturia together.

"Father?" Mordred said as she did the same as her fellow knights.

"Oh my," Merlin said as he looked at both Saber and Caster Arturia.

"Hm? Oh, hey everyone," Saber Arturia said as she noticed the Knights of the Round coming up towards them.

"My king, who is this person that looks like you?" Gawain asked.

"This person over here is my Caster counterpart," Arturia replied.

"Hi everybody! I'm Caster Arturia! Pleased to meet you all!" Caster Arturia said happily.

The Knights of the Round and Merlin were surprised with the news they just received.

"Haha! Another adorable form I see!" Gawain said.

"I wonder how many versions of the king we have now," Lancelot said.

"Eh? There are other versions of you beside me?" Caster Arturia asked Arturia.

"Yes. Our king has an altered counterpart, a Lily counterpart, a Lancer counterpart, a Lancer Alter counterpart, a Ruler counterpart, an Archer counterpart, a Rider Alter counterpart, a Santa Alter counterpart, an Assassin counterpart, a Berserker counterpart, and a Foreigner counterpart," Tristan said.

Caster Arturia was shocked upon hearing Tristan's words. "You got to be kidding me..."

"Yeah. And that's not counting the look-alikes," Gareth said.

"Eh?! There's other servants here that look like me?!"

"Yeah..." Bedivere said.

"Wow...this is going to take some time to take in..."

"You aren't kidding. Anyways, I'm surprised to see father as a mage, even though I've seen counterparts of my father that don't wield any swords," Mordred said.

"That's right! I'm not good with swords, but I've learned all sorts of magecraft from Merlin!"

Everyone besides Arturia and Merlin were shocked upon hearing those words.

"Oh really? And what did my counterpart in your world teach you?" Merlin asked sweetly.

"Hm...well..."

However, at that moment, Lancelot grabbed Merlin by the collar of his robes and said, "I would appreciate it if you would stop meddling with the king."

"Hey. It's not my fault. Blame that on that other world's version of me..." Merlin replied.

"Uh, what's going on?" Caster Arturia asked.

"Oh, it's nothing. Anyways, if you're in trouble, don't hesitate to speak up. Got it?" Gawain asked.

"Y-Yeah."

"Good. Now if you'll excuse me, me and my fellow knights need to have a talk with Merlin..."

The rest of the knights nodded upon hearing Gawain's words and started dragging Merlin elsewhere. During the dragging, Merlin had a look on his face that said, "Why me?"

"Uh, what just happened?" Caster Arturia asked.

Saber Arturia sighed. "It's nothing. Anyway, shall we continue the tour?"

"Yes!"

Soon, Saber Arturia continued taking her Caster counterpart on the tour in Chaldea. As she did, Caster Arturia then started a conversation with her Saber counterpart.

"Hey, Saber me, can I ask you something?" Caster Arturia asked.

"Sure. What is it?" Saber Arturia replied.

"Well, since you're a saber class, does that mean that your main weapon is a sword?"

"Yes. My weapon is Excalibur."

"Excalibur huh? I heard a few bits about it from Merlin. It's a strong weapon. Do you mind if I can look at it?"

"Sure. Why not." Arturia then summoned Excalibur and showed it to Caster Arturia. As Caster Arturia looked at it, she was in awe over how simple, yet beautiful. "Wow. So, this is Excalibur...it looks prettier than I imagined. Wait a minute, where's the scabbard?"

"Well?" Saber Arturia said.

"It looks amazing. Just like how Merlin told me in the past. Although there's one question I want to ask."

"What is it?"

"Where's Excalibur's sheath, Avalon?"

"Well..."

"You don't have it? Did you lose it?"

"No, I do have it. It's just that...well..."

"Well what?"

"Well...just give me a moment," Saber Arturia said as she soon started to walk away from Caster Arturia, making her confused.

"What's going on? Where is my saber counterpart going?"

After a few minutes of being alone, Caster Arturia had her answer as Saber Arturia was dragging Shirou along with her.

For a moment, there was silence between the three as everyone laid eyes on each other. Especially for Caster Arturia because as she looked at Shirou, she felt something familiar coming out of him. "Who is this person that my Saber counterpart brought over? And why does he feel so familiar? How though, I never met him..." she thought.

Then Shirou asked Saber Arturia a question.

"Hey Arturia? Is that another counterpart of you?" Shirou asked.

"Yes Shirou. That is my Caster counterpart from another timeline. Want to greet her?" Arturia replied.

"I see. Hello Caster, my name is Emiya Shirou. Nice to meet you," Shirou greeted with a smile on his face.

Upon hearing Shirou's voice, Caster Arturia quickly stopped thinking and greeted him back. "N-Nice to meet you Emiya Shirou!" she said as she raised her hand for a handshake. Shirou then responded to the handshake and shook Caster Arturia's hand. As they were done with the handshake, Caster Arturia then turned to her Saber counterpart. "Um, saber me, who is Emiya Shirou?"

Saber Arturia let out a smile. "Emiya Shirou is my former master, the current bearer of Avalon, and me and my counterparts' consort."

Caster Arturia was shocked with the statement. "He's the current bearer of Avalon?!"

"Yes."

Wanting to see if what Saber Arturia said was true, Caster Arturia then came up to Shirou and used her staff to see if Avalon was there. As she checked, she immediately knew what the familiar feeling was.

"You were right...so that's what that familiar feeling from earlier was..." Caster Arturia muttered.

"Hm? Did you say something?" Shirou asked.

"Hm?! Ah! It's nothing! Anyways, this is incredible. I've never seen a person bearing a sheath inside of one's body, let alone Avalon..." Caster Arturia said in amazement.

"Yeah. Imagine my surprise when I saw Shirou bearing it for the first time," Saber Arturia said.

"I can imagine that. A person bearing a noble phantasm inside...that's unheard of."

"You can say that again. Anyways, welcome to Chaldea Caster Arturia. I hope we get along," Shirou said with a smile on his face.

Caster Arturia blushed upon seeing Shirou's smile. "L-Likewise! I hope we get along as well Shirou."

Noticing her Caster counterpart's behavior, Saber Arturia decided to step in. "Well then, shall we continue this conversation in the cafeteria? After all, Shirou can make good food over there."

Caster Arturia's eyes beamed up. "How good are we talking about?" she asked.

Saber Arturia smirked. "So good that you won't forget it even in your lifetime."

Upon hearing Saber Arturia's words, Caster Arturia quickly grabbed Shirou's arm. "Come on Shirou! I want to try your cooking now!"

Shirou let out a small sigh. "All right. Let us now, shall we?"

"Yes!" both Saber and Caster Arturia said in unison as Saber Arturia went towards the cafeteria with Caster Arturia following her while dragging Shirou at the same time.

_"Well, guess that no matter which Arturia is which, they can't resist good food. Especially mine..."_

"By the way, earlier you said that Shirou was you and your counterparts' consort, right?" Caster Arturia asked her Saber counterpart.

"Yeah. Why?" Saber Arturia asked.

"Well...if that's the case...then doesn't that make Shirou my husband already since I'm your Caster counterpart?!"

Shirou sighed as things now just got complicated...

**Omake**

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oh Shirou! Your weapon is a perfect fit for my magecraft!" Caster Arturia said.

"You think so?" Shirou replied.

"Yeah! Let's give it some power!" Caster Arturia then twirled her staff around and in an instant, Shirou's katana glowed up for a moment. After it stopped glowing, Shirou checked his katana to see if there were any effects on it.

"Wow, there is a slight boost of power here. Not only that, but the blade feels lighter as well."

"Well?"

Shirou let out a smile. "Thanks, Arturia," he said with a smile as he gave her a head pat.

"No problem!" Caster Arturia said with a smile on her face.

Meanwhile, Arturia and her counterparts suddenly had a weird feeling.

Like if someone was getting ahead of them...


	51. Angra Mainyu's Worst Fear

Ritsuka was walking in Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business. "Well, today seems to be a good day. There's no chaos, no singularity to deal with, and everyone here is on good terms...for the most part at least. Looks like nothing bad will happen today," he thought.

As Ritsuka kept walking, he noticed a certain servant standing weirdly on a wall.

And that servant was Angra Mainyu, also known as All the World's Evil.

"Hm? What is Angra Mainyu doing over there? And why is he standing here awkwardly? I'll go check up on him to see what's wrong with him."

Ritsuka then went over to where Angra Mainyu was. Meanwhile, Angra Mainyu was standing behind a hallway, hoping that he wasn't seen. "Phew. He hasn't saw me yet. Guess I can leave now, and-"

"Angra Mainyu, what are you doing?" Ritsuka interrupted, snapping Angra Mainyu out of his thoughts. Shocked, he turned around to see who found him. In his relief, it was Ritsuka that found him.

"Oh. Hey master," Angra Mainyu said with a sigh of relief. "What are you doing here?"

"That's my question. What were you doing behind over there? Were you hiding from something or someone?"

Angra Mainyu scoffed at Ritsuka's question. "Heh. That's a funny joke to hear master. Just how was I hiding?"

"Well...to be blunt, you were standing awkwardly over there. Care to explain that?"

Angra Mainyu didn't say anything for a moment. "Oh that? That is well...I was stretching for a moment over there."

Ritsuka raised his eyebrow. "Stretching?"

"Yeah. You got a problem with that?"

"Well no, but-" Ritsuka said, but was cut off from Angra Mainyu.

"Exactly! Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going back to my room master. And don't bother me. Understand?"

Ritsuka sighed. "Yeah."

"Good." Angra Mainyu then quickly took off.

"What's with him?" Ritsuka thought as he saw Angra Mainyu took off as fast as he can.

Meanwhile, Angra Mainyu was running towards his room as fast as his can, surprising any servant that passed him by. Eventually, he arrived at his room and closed the door.

He let out a sigh as he was alone in his room.

"Phew. Finally, alone in my room...especially when I'm not near Emiya Shirou. That guy still scares me. Even now, I'm surprised he managed to get himself here..." Angra Mainyu thought has his mind went back to the day he found out that Emiya Shirou arrived in Chaldea.

_(Many months ago...)_

Angra Mainyu was walking down the hallway in Chaldea, minding his own business. As he did, he overheard something that completely shocked him.

"Hey, did you hear?" one servant said.

"Yeah. We have a new servant here, and apparently, he's like Gilgamesh, but a lot nicer," another servant replied.

"Really? Who is it?"

"The servant's name is Emiya Shirou."

"Emiya Shirou...never heard of him in any legend I've ever heard of. Do you have any idea what legend is he from?"

"Me neither."

"I see."

In an instant, Angra Mainyu quickly ran in the hallway like a maniac and headed towards his room. As he arrived in his room, his mind was in a shock over what he just heard.

_"What the heck?! You got to be kidding me?! Emiya Shirou is here?! He of all people became a servant?! And he's here right now?! Great, this is the worst since I'm practically the one that nearly turned his life into a living hell and nearly killed him. If he sees me right now, he's definitely going to go after me relentlessly over something that was the aftermath of my loss in the Third Holy Grail War. And even then, I didn't do anything! Jeez, things are going to be a pain in the ass if he sees me..."_

For a few minutes, Angra Mainyu took a few deep breaths, calming himself down. "Okay. Now that Emiya Shirou is here, I can't be careless in wherever I go. In other words, I cannot meet him in any situation. Hopefully I can do this..."

And this is how Angra Mainyu began avoiding Emiya Shirou this whole time...

_(Back to the present...)_

As Angra Mainyu was back checking his past, he had a few thoughts to himself. "Okay, it's been a while since I've avoided Emiya Shirou. I mean, I'm not scared of him. It's just that he creeps me out for some reason. And there's his noble phantasm..." he thought/

_(A few days after Emiya Shirou's victory over Archer Gilgamesh...)_

Angra Mainyu was relaxing in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms, drinking a can of soda as he sat down on one of the sofas there.

However, his relaxation was interrupted by a conversation from two servants. Normally, he would just ignore the conversation and continue drinking his soda.

However, what the servants said next completely shocked him.

"Hey, did you hear? The servant known as Emiya Shirou actually beat the King of Heroes!" one servant said.

"Really?!"

"Yeah. It was said that Emiya Shirou possess two noble phantasms. One which is a reality marble."

"And the other?"

"A katana called Tsumugari Muramasa. It's a blade that can purge resentment, cut through bonds, fate, causality, and destiny, and slice through the idea of karma itself. In other words, it's a blade that can kill gods."

"No way?!"

"Yeah."

As the conversation between the two servants continued, Angra Mainyu was sweating a bit upon hearing what Shirou's noble phantasms are. "Okay, this is ridiculous! It's one thing that Shirou possesses two noble phantasms, but it's another thing if one of them is a reality marble! Not only that, but what kind of bullshit is Tsumugari Muramasa?! A blade that can purge resentment, cut through bonds, fate, causality, and destiny, and slice through the idea of karma itself?! That's practically poison to me! And I'm the one that spreads cursed mud! And he beat the King of Heroes?! The same guy that practically got out of the mud of the grail with just his ego?! Just what is he now, a god-killer?!" he thought.

_(Back to the present again...)_

Angra Mainyu sighed as he remembered the conversations about Emiya Shirou he overheard in the past. "Man. Maybe I'll go to sleep and wonder if tomorrow will be good at least. All of this stress about not meeting Emiya Shirou is making me crazy..."

And Angra Mainyu soon went to bed, sleeping as he hoped for a better tomorrow...

_(The next day...)_

Angra Mainyu let out a sigh as he was walking down the hallway. "Well. Today seems to be going well. Master isn't bothering me, Emiya Shirou isn't around wherever I go, and no one isn't annoying me. Looks like nothing bad will happen to me..."

However, as if life wants to screw him over, Angra Mainyu sensed Shirou's presence coming in front of him and he was startled by it. "Crap. I just had to jinx it." Angra Mainyu then looked around to see if there was anywhere to hide. As he looked around, he saw a room he could escape into. "Great! I can hide over there!"

In an instant, Angra Mainyu went into the room, hiding from Shirou. "Phew. That was close."

However, when he turned around, he realized what room he was in.

He was in the girl's bathroom, and every female servant that was in the room was staring at him angrily.

"Oh shit."

And in an instant, he was attacked by all the female servants that were there.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angra Mainyu sighed as he looked at the injuries the female servants gave him earlier. "Jeez, who would have ever thought that the room I hid into happened to be the bathroom for the girls...well, hope eating lunch would calm my nerves..." he thought as he was walking towards the cafeteria.

However, as he got to the cafeteria, he quickly retreated upon seeing who was there.

It was Emiya Shirou, who was cooking for everyone over there. Especially Arturia and her counterparts.

_"Aw come on! I just got here and he's already there! I swear, does Emiya Shirou even have a life?! And how is it that whenever I go somewhere that is safe, he appears at the wrong time?! Does Alaya or Gaia have a grudge against me?! This is unfair!"_

After a few seconds of his mind rant, Angra Mainyu calmed down and thought out his plans. "Okay. There's no need to panic. All I need to do is to wait it out and wait for him to leave. That should work at least," he thought as he began to wait for Shirou to come out.

However, as time passed, Emiya Shirou did not come out of the cafeteria.

_"Really?! It's already this long and he's still not done with what's he doing over there?! Jeez, just what is keeping him in there?"_

Many minutes passed, and eventually, Angra Mainyu got tired of waiting.

_"Screw it, I'll get something from the vending machine."_

And Angra Mainyu left...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angra Mainyu sighed as he was walking in the hallway, stressing out over what happened earlier. "Jeez, it's already halfway into the afternoon, and I'm already exhausted from running and hiding from Emiya Shirou. Jeez, this is even more painful than what those villagers did to me in the past...well, at least I ain't going to encounter him now."

However, as soon as he thought that, his worst fear has come to life.

In the form of Emiya Shirou and Ritsuka.

As soon as Angra Mainyu had contact on both Shirou and Ritsuka, one thought came into his mind.

_"Crap."_

Meanwhile, Shirou and Ritsuka laid eyes on Angra Mainyu. As they did, Shirou felt an uneasy, yet familiar feeling from him.

"This feeling of uneasiness...and that weird aura of his...no! It can't be!" Shirou thought.

"Oh. Hey Angra Mainyu. How are you doing?" Ritsuka asked.

Angra Mainyu mentally facepalmed at Ritsuka's question. "Well, thanks to what just happened now, I'm not doing so well because of you master! You just happened to bring the one person I do not want to meet right now! Great, now I'm screwed!" he thought.

Meanwhile, Shirou was feeling uneasy about Angra Mainyu in front of him. "Uh master, what did you say earlier?"

"Hm? I just asked Angra Mainyu how he's doing. Why?"

In an instant, Shirou realized the servant that was in front of him.

He was Angra Mainyu, the same servant that caused the aftereffects of the fourth Fuyuki Grail War and nearly the fifth if Shirou didn't order Arturia to destroy the grail.

"I see..."

In an instant, Shirou launched himself at Angra Mainyu, drawing his katana and began to strike at him. Realizing what was about to happen, Angra Mainyu also drew his weapons to defend himself.

Ritsuka was shocked to see Shirou out of character as he was attacking Angra Mainyu. "Shirou! What are you doing?!"

"Master! Do you have any idea who this servant is?!" Shirou yelled.

"Y-Yes..."

"Then let me finish this! This servant shouldn't be here!"

Soon, Shirou and Angra started fighting among each other. As they were fighting, Shirou was slowly gaining the upper hand as he kept attacking Angra Mainyu, forcing him to defend himself.

Realizing that Shirou was planning to kill Angra Mainyu, Ritsuka then raised one of his hands. "By the order of my command seal, I demand you to cease this fighting immediately!"

Upon Ritsuka's command, one of his command seals disappeared, forcing Shirou to stop fighting against Angra Mainyu. "Master..." he muttered.

"Shirou. Put your weapon down for a moment. Let's just talk this out for a moment. Okay?" Ritsuka asked.

Shirou sighed. "All right master," he said as he sheathed his katana.

Angra Mainyu sighed as the fight was over. "Phew. That was close. I was so close to getting myself killed there..."

"All right then, would you explain why you would attack Angra Mainyu Shirou?" Ritsuka asked.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Master, the servant that is in front of me now is the main reason why the Grail Wars in my time was disastrous."

Ritsuka was shocked. "Really?"

"Yeah. Thanks to the mud he left behind, the grail of my world was so tainted that it wasn't even able to make wishes come true."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

Ritsuka then turned to Angra Mainyu. "Is all of that true Angra Mainyu?"

Angra Mainyu sighed. "Yes. However, to be fair, blame the Einzberns for trying to cheat in the third grail war. If they hadn't cheated and summoned me in the first place, all of that crap that happened in your world never happened."

"Why you-!" Shirou said as he was getting angry.

Ritsuka sighed and decided to cut in to prevent this to get even further. "All right, now I don't know what the heck happened between the two of you, but for now, let's get along. Okay? And don't make me use a command seal on both of you."

Upon hearing Ritsuka's command, both Shirou and Angra Mainyu reluctantly agreed. "Fine," they said in unison.

"Good. Now Shirou, apologize."

Shirou then looked at Angra Mainyu and said, "Sorry."

"No need. I'm already used to be hated already," Angra Mainyu said.

Ritsuka smiled. "Good. Now let's move on, shall we?"

Both Shirou and Angra Mainyu sighed. "Fine..."

"Excellent."

And Angra Mainyu went left both Shirou and Ritsuka. As he did, he let out a sigh. "Phew. That was close. Hope I'll never see him again..." he thought.

_"Angra Mainyu...I don't know what you're doing here, but if you cause any harm to master, I'll kill you...also, why is it that you look like me?"_


	52. In EMIYA's Eyes

EMIYA let out a small sigh as he was cleaning the kitchen counter in Chaldea's cafeteria. As he was wiping the counter, he had a few thoughts going in his mind.

"Well, it's been long time since I arrived here at Chaldea and my life has changed from my time as a counter guardian for Alaya. I don't have to kill anybody on sight on missions, I'm allowed to cook if I wish to, and the atmosphere here is something I can get used to. Especially with all of the servants here..." EMIYA thought as his mind went back into the past...

_(Back to the day when EMIYA was summoned in Chaldea...)_

"Servant Archer. I come in response to your summons," EMIYA said as he introduced himself to Ritsuka and Mashu who were in front of him. Meanwhile, Ritsuka and Mashu were surprised to see Archer.

Because they've already seen him...well, a blackened version of him.

"Wow. So, this is Archer not blackened. Not only that, but this one is from another timeline..." Ritsuka and Mashu thought.

"Um...master?" EMIYA said, snapping Ritsuka out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, sorry Archer," Ritsuka apologized.

"Um...do you have a name besides Archer?" Mashu asked.

"Sorry master, but it seems that I don't remember my name. However, don't worry master, it doesn't bother me," EMIYA replied as he doesn't want to say his name.

"I see. Anyways, welcome to Chaldea Archer," Ritsuka said with a smile.

"Chaldea? What's that?" EMIYA asked.

"An organization designed to protect humanity."

EMIYA gave Ritsuka's answer a long thought. "An organization designed to protect humanity? Well that's new. I've never heard of Chaldea before."

"Um Archer?" Ritsuka said, snapping EMIYA out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing master. Anyways master, what am I going to annihilate? I will slaughter your enemies as you wish."

For a moment, Ritsuka and Mashu were quiet upon hearing what EMIYA just said. "Um...Archer...here's the thing. We don't have to kill people."

EMIYA was surprised. "Wait. You don't have to kill people?"

"Y-Yeah," Mashu replied.

"But then how is Chaldea going to protect humanity?"

"Well, what Chaldea does in order to protect humanity is that we preserve humanity's history by going to singularities and fix them."

"Is that so?" EMIYA asked as he was both interested and slightly relieved.

"Yeah. Anyways, do you want a tour of Chaldea?" Ritsuka asked.

"Sure. I don't mind," EMIYA replied.

"Great. Let's go then."

Soon, Ritsuka, Mashu, and EMIYA went out of the summoning room and Ritsuka and Mashu gave EMIYA a tour of Chaldea. As the tour continued, EMIYA was surprised with how high-tech Chaldea was along with Mashu telling EMIYA how Chaldea was created by Marisbury Animusphere after he won the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki in this world in 2004.

"So, it seems that I landed in a timeline that is different from the one that I came from. Unlike the timeline I came from, this timeline only had one grail war, and from what Mashu told me, Marisbury Animusphere created Chaldea after he won this world's Fuyuki Holy Grail War..." he thought as he continued walking alongside Ritsuka and Mashu.

"Hey Archer, are you okay?" Ritsuka asked, snapping EMIYA out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I was just thinking about some things," EMIYA replied.

"I see. Anyways, the room that we're about to come up next is the cafeteria."

"The cafeteria huh?" EMIYA said with a small smile on his face.

"Yes. Is there something wrong with that?" Mashu asked.

"Well no. It's just that I have some fond memories of cooking."

"Really? Are you able to cook by any chance?" Ritsuka asked.

"You can say that. I have experience in cooking."

"I see."

Eventually, Ritsuka, Mashu, and EMIYA arrived at the cafeteria. As they did, EMIYA was surprised to see that there were other servants in the cafeteria. Some of them were ones he already met.

"Um master, there are other servants here. What should we do?" EMIYA asked.

"Relax Archer. Everyone here is an ally," Ritsuka replied.

EMIYA was surprised to hear Ritsuka's statement. "Are you serious?"

"Yes."

"Wait, so that means...did you summon all of them?"

"Yes. And there's more here."

For once, EMIYA was shocked as he was processing the fact that Ritsuka summoned all of those servants. "Just what kind of master did I get..."

_(Back to the present...)_

EMIYA let out a small sigh as he continued cleaning the kitchen counter. "Even since I was summoned in Chaldea, things have changed for me. I'm not killing innocent people on sight unlike my time with Alaya and for once, I can enjoy myself. I'll admit, I was surprised to hear that master summoned all those servants here, although Chaldea is supplying for them, so that's a relief for him. Although I'm still surprised with the amount of servants master has summoned here. Especially since some of them I already knew from either history books or from the Holy Grail War I was in. In fact, I still cannot believe that Thomas Edison and Nikolas Tesla are here as well. Although why does Thomas Edison have a lion's head on him and wears spandex that looks like a superhero costume? That's not how the history books depicted him. Not only that, but why does Nikolas Tesla look so young? I swear, history tends to get historical figures mixed up for some reason," he thought.

Soon, EMIYA was done cleaning the kitchen countertop and soon started to leave the cafeteria. As he did, he passed by many servants with many legends. Some which were talking about Emiya Shirou. "Wow. It's only been months since my younger counterpart arrived here in Chaldea and he's already the subject of many topics to talk about. I'm surprised that he's already this popular here..." he thought.

Soon, EMIYA stopped and looked at the window. "However, the most shocking thing that I have ever seen was finding out that I have an altered counterpart..." he thought.

_(Months earlier...)_

EMIYA was walking in one of Chaldea's hallways, minding his own business. As he did, he ended up bumping into a certain servant.

"Ow," the servant said as he fell to the ground.

"Ow...are you all right?" EMIYA asked as he was lending the servant a hand to get up.

"Yeah. I'll be fine," the servant replied as he grabbed EMIYA's arm and pulled himself up. As the servant got himself up, EMIYA was shocked to see who the servant was.

And the servant was shocked as well.

The servant looked like him, but his skin was darker, his hair was shaved, and his eyes were golden. The outfit he was wearing consists of black sleeves with golden accents ending in thick metal manacles, black pants with a weave pattern, and white boots. His torso was showing as he was lacking a shirt.

For a moment, both servants were shocked as they looked at each other while saying nothing.

"This servant...oh you got to be kidding me...he's me!" they both thought in unison.

_(Back to the present again...)_

"To this day, I'm still surprised that my altered counterpart looks like a gangster from Shinjuku. Furthermore, from what he told me, he turned Kanshou and Bakuya into twin guns. I wonder what caused him to change weapon styles..." EMIYA thought as he continued looking at the sky. Eventually, EMIYA got tired of looking at the sky and decided to do something. "Maybe I'll go to the training room next to clear my mind off of things..." he thought.

EMIYA then soon went into the training room. As he did, he saw someone over here who was already training.

"Hm? Oh, hey Archer! Or should I call you EMIYA?" Lancer Cu asked with a grin on his face as he noticed him.

EMIYA sighed. "Just call me Archer, Cu."

"All right then. So Archer, what brings you here to the training room?" Lancer Cu asked as he continued practicing with Gae Bolg in his hands.

"Oh nothing. Just thought that I could clear my mind of some things and practice on my skills," EMIYA replied.

"Is that so? Or are you worried that your younger counterpart will surpass you and leave you right in the dust?" Lancer Cu asked with a smug grin on his face.

"Tch. You really like to push people's buttons huh?" EMIYA said.

Lancer Cu's smug grin grew even further. "Then you'll won't mind if I fight you right now?"

EMIYA sighed. "Sure."

Lancer Cu grinned. "Great! Let's go then!" he said as he went to the training arena. EMIYA soon followed him afterwards. As both EMIYA and Lancer Cu got onto the training arena, Lancer Cu readied himself as he was in his signature fighting pose. "You ready?"

EMIYA let out a chuckle. "As I'll ever be..." he replied as he projected Kanshou and Bakuya.

"Great! Here I go then!" Lancer Cu said as he lunged himself at EMIYA. Soon, EMIYA and Lancer Cu clashed with their weapons in their hands. As they did, Lancer Cu pushed EMIYA back a bit with his spear. However, EMIYA quickly recovered and regained his stance. As he did, Lancer Cu was about to lunge his spear at him, but EMIYA quickly dodged Cu's strike to the side and proceeded to stab him. However, Lancer Cu quickly saw that move and he dodged that. As he did, he then swung his spear at EMIYA in which EMIYA quickly blocked it with Kanshou and Bakuya.

"You know...it's been a while since we last fought huh?" Lancer Cu said.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Well, aside from your younger self that is."

EMIYA sighed as Cu mentioned his younger counterpart. "Really? How did he fight against you?"

Lancer Cu smiled. "Honestly, he gave me quite the challenge. Probably the best I ever had quite a while. And the same goes well for my counterparts as well."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. In fact, I couldn't even believe my eyes upon hearing that he fought against my mentor and her counterpart," Cu said as he started swinging against EMIYA.

EMIYA was surprised to hear Lancer Cu's statement while dodging Lancer Cu's swings at the same time. "Really? My younger counterpart actually fought against Scathach, the Queen of Shadows and her counterpart? Jeez, just what did he do to earn their attention? Wait, I do not want to know."

As EMIYA and Lancer Cu continued fighting, they eventually stopped swinging at each other and moved back to their corners of the arena and gave themselves some space. As they were gathering breath, Lancer Cu said something to EMIYA.

"You know...I had a weird feeling that the kid was somewhat related to you. And after hearing Muramasa saying that you were him from an alternate future timeline, everything made sense," Lancer Cu said.

"Yeah. Honestly, I wished Muramasa didn't reveal that secret..." EMIYA muttered.

"Hey, secrets can't be hidden forever. Eventually, they'll be revealed in due time," Lancer Cu said as he readied himself.

"True," EMIYA said as he readied himself as well.

EMIYA and Lancer Cu then launched towards each other with their weapons in their hands. As they did, EMIYA kicked Lancer Cu backwards, making him lose his footing and allowing EMIYA to rush at him.

"Wow. You're putting some work into this!" Lancer Cu said.

"I'll take that as a complement," EMIYA replied as he blocked on of Lancer Cu's strikes. As he did, he moved back by a bit and projected copies of Kanshou and Bakuya. He then shot the copies at Lancer Cu in which he deflected them by spinning his spear around.

In an instant, the copies of Kanshou and Bakuya went all over in the arena. Both EMIYA and Lancer Cu were breathing heavily as they were exhausted from the moves they were executing earlier.

"Say...that wasn't half bad there..." Lancer Cu said.

"Yeah...I was wondering why you didn't show this much strength the first time we faced each other..." EMIYA said.

"Well...to be fair...my master was a complete coward..."

"Is that so..."

"Yeah. He wouldn't let me have the fight that I ever wanted...anyways, let's settle this, shall we?"

EMIYA smirked. "Sure. Don't cry if you lose."

"Likewise," Lancer Cu replied with a smirk of his own.

And they then lunged at each other for the final time...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Phew! That was a close match!" Lancer Cu said as he was wiping the sweat off his face with a hand towel.

"Yeah...you were quite a challenge there..." EMIYA replied as he did the same as Lancer Cu was doing.

Right now, EMIYA and Lancer Cu were taking a break after their match and were now resting on a nearby bench with water bottles EMIYA brought over from the nearby vending machine.

"Hey Archer, can I ask you something?" Lancer Cu asked.

"Sure. What is it?" EMIYA replied.

"Well...how do you feel about your younger counterpart arriving here?"

For a moment, EMIYA was silent on the topic as he was thinking of an answer to say. Then he said his answer. "Well, to be honest. I expected him to arrive here since well, I've seen multiple counterparts of you, the King of Knights, and many other people I've already met. I mean, if that can happen, then so can he."

"I see..." Cu said as he took a sip of his water bottle.

"However, I was glad for a bit."

"You were glad? About what?"

"That he didn't repeat the same mistakes that I made in the past. Furthermore, he didn't let his ideals betray him and he was able to move on without falling into despair, unlike me in the past."

Cu was interested in what EMIYA just said. "And what mistakes did you make yourself in the past that made you different from your younger counterpart?"

EMIYA was silent before replying, "I don't want to talk about it."

"Fair enough," Lancer Cu said as he sipped on his water bottle again. "So, you're okay with your younger counterpart here then."

"Yeah. Anyways, what are your thoughts on my younger counterpart arriving here?"

Lancer Cu gave EMIYA's question a long thought and said, "Well honestly, I'm surprised that the kid was able to turn into a heroic spirit. Furthermore, during the practice match I had with him, he impressed me with how much he's improved compared to the last time I saw him. Not only that, but when my other counterparts came by earlier, he gave all of them a good fight. He even surprised them when he pulled Gae Bolg out of nowhere."

"And did that attract the attention of your teacher and your counterpart?"

Lancer Cu shrugged in fear upon hearing EMIYA's question. "Y-Yeah. To be fair, me and my counterparts did not expect shishou to appear in front of us when we were talking about the kid."

EMIYA let out a chuckle upon hearing Lancer Cu's tone of voice. "You still scared of her?"

"Obviously! When she was summoned here along with her counterpart, me and my counterparts were scared shitless! Honestly, when she and her counterpart had their eyes on the kid, we actually prayed for his safety upon meeting them!"

EMIYA started laughing. "Really? You and your counterparts actually prayed for his safety? That's the most hilarious thing I have ever heard from your mouth."

Lancer Cu let out a small pout. "Well sorry, but she still scares me and my counterparts! And we practically gave the kid a death sentence because she managed to overhear us at that time! In fact, afterwards when we saw the kid alive after his encounter with shishou and her counterpart, we were relieved and congratulated him that he survived!"

"Really?" EMIYA said in a fit of laughter.

"Yeah! So stop laughing at both me and the kid's misfortune!"

EMIYA soon slowly stopped laughing. "Sorry for laughing about that," he said with chuckles in his voice.

"Doesn't seem like you're sorry about that..." Lancer Cu mumbled.

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Looks like my counterpart has attracted so much attention ever since he arrived here in Chaldea huh?"

"You can say that again. Ranging from his arrival here to his victory over the King of Heroes, he certainly gained attention here. Heck, even Muramasa gained some attention as well!"

"Oh yeah. That punch of his...you still remember it?" EMIYA said.

"Yes. It was the greatest moment I have ever seen. I'm glad that caster was there to record the whole thing..." Lancer Cu said as he reimagined the event in his head.

For a moment, EMIYA and Lancer Cu said nothing. Then EMIYA broke the silence. "It's funny. The first time we met, we were fighting each other in a holy grail war, and now we're chatting like we're friends."

"Yeah. Quite funny how life works huh? Especially since the topic that we're talking about is your younger self. Wonder what's he doing right now..."

"Maybe he's cooking at the cafeteria or fixing something or testing for Da Vinci again."

"How would you know?"

"Because I'm him. Remember?" EMIYA jokingly said.

Lancer Cu laughed. "You have a point there!"

And the two continued talking between each other...


	53. A Maid's Duty

In the confines of his room, Shirou was sleeping peacefully on his bed. As he was sleeping, a certain servant then came into his room quietly.

"Master. Wake up."

Shirou didn't say anything as he was still asleep.

"Master. Wake up."

Upon hearing the command a second time, Shirou mumbled and opened his eyes. As he did, he saw a certain servant that was next to him.

It was Rider Arturia Alter, who was wearing a maid outfit.

"A-Arturia?" Shirou moaned as he was waking up from his sleep.

"Call me Rider Alter in this case master," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"I see. What are you doing here in my room?" Shirou asked as he was getting up.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to wake you up."

Shirou was surprised. "Why? I can wake myself up you know. And why are you calling me master?"

"It's my duty as your maid for today master."

Shirou was shocked at what Rider Arturia Alter said. "What?"

"You didn't hear me correctly? It's my duty as your maid for today master," Rider Arturia Alter repeated as she folded the bed sheets while Shirou was getting dressed.

"Um...but why though? Why are you my maid for today?" Shirou asked as he was still confused with the situation around him.

"Well...it's a long story...and it involves Irisviel..." Rider Arturia said as she soon began to explain the story of how she ended up becoming Shirou's maid for today...

_(Earlier...)_

Irisviel was walking in the hallway of Chaldea, minding her own business as her mind was on one thing.

Her adoptive son's life.

_"Hm...what should I do about Shirou? Lately, he's been working a bit too much and It's starting to influence his body and health. And no matter how many times he tells me he's okay, I can see through the injuries and exhaustion he's going through. Jeez, what am I going to do with him? From what I heard; he's been like this ever since his world's Kiritsugu's saved him from the aftermath of the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War in his timeline. He could use some relaxation time you know! Wonder what should I do about that problem of his..."_

As Irisviel continued walking in the hallway, she then had an idea come into her head.

"Wait. That's it! I can do that! All I need to do is find her and my plan will be complete! Oh why didn't I think of this earlier?" she thought excitedly. She then started to run in the hallway, finding the one servant she needed to fix Shirou's problem, or at least relieve him of his stress.

Soon, she found Rider Arturia Alter, who was walking in an opposite corner of the hallway Irisviel was in. As she did, she came up to her with a smile. "Hey Arturia!" she said excitedly.

"Hm? Oh, hey Irisviel. What do you want?"

Irisviel let out a smile. "I have a favor to ask of you, and it involves Shirou's wellbeing. Will you help me out?"

That immediately got Rider Arturia Alter interested. "Give me more of the details," she demanded.

Irisviel's grin grew even further as her plan was coming into place. "Well. How would you like to be Shirou's maid for a few days?"

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's what happened Shirou," Rider Arturia Alter said as she was done explaining the current situation and how it all started.

Shirou was surprised with what Rider Arturia Alter said. "So, let me get this straight. The reason why you're here is because my mom was worried about me because of my habits. During that moment, she came up with a plan to help me relieve my stress and that plan would be you being my maid for one day?"

"That's exactly correct master."

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Mom, sometimes I will never understand what goes into your head along with your plans..."

"Master?" Rider Arturia Alter said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing Rider Alter. So...what happens now?"

"Isn't it obvious, I'm here to act as your maid for today. From now until the next day, whatever you want or ask for, I will do as you wish. Now hurry up, we got things to do."

Shirou was both and nervous and confused with the orders Rider Arturia Alter said. However, he still moved on. "Okay. Then shall we leave the room then?"

"As you wish master."

Shirou sighed. This was going to be a long day...

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking with Rider Arturia Alter by his side as many servants were looking at him. Some servants were looking at him with wonder while others were looking at him with jealously. While Rider Arturia Alter didn't care about the attention she was receiving, Shirou mentally groaned at the attention he was getting from the other servants.

_"Jeez, this amount of attention is even more creepy than the time where I wore that weird magic wand mystic code Da Vinci made a long time ago. And this is going to last for a few days..."_

As Shirou continued walking along with Rider Arturia Alter, he bumped into a certain blue lancer.

"Hm? Oh, hey there kid! And is that the Altered King of Knights over there?" Lancer Cu said as he looked at the pair.

"Hey there Cu..." Shirou muttered.

"What do you want Lancer?" Rider Arturia Alter asked.

"What? I'm just trying to have a conversation with him. Also, what's with the maid outfit?"

"It's my duty as being Shirou's maid."

For a moment, Lancer Cu said nothing. Then after a few seconds of silence, he started laughing like crazy.

"Hahahahahahahaha! No way kid! You actually got a maid?! And the maid happened to be the altered King of Knights?! This is just way too funny!" Lancer said while laughing hysterically.

However, he was soon greeted with a mop at his throat.

"I won't allow such insult at my master. Now shut up or else I'll shove this mop down your throat," Rider Arturia Alter said menacingly, making Lancer Cu shut up in fear.

"Wow. She is taking the role as the kid's maid seriously. It's probably better if I shut up right now," Lancer Cu thought as he felt Excalibur Morgan near his throat.

"Rider Alter, that's enough. Please lower the weapon." Shirou said.

"As you wish master." Rider Arturia Alter then lowered Excalibur Morgan, making Cu sigh in relief.

"Sorry about this Cu," Shirou apologized.

"Nah. I definitely deserved that. Anyways, what's with you two today?" Lancer Cu asked.

"Well, let's just say...my mom came up with this situation."

"Mom? You mean that white haired woman with the flashy dress and crown?" Lancer Cu said as he remembered Irisviel.

"Yes."

"Huh. I didn't know she came up with this. She must be full of crazy ideas."

Shirou sighed. "You have no idea what she is capable of Cu..." he said as he remembered all of the plans Irisviel has come up with in the past.

Lancer Cu shrugged. "Anyways, I got to go now. See you kid."

"Yeah. Bye Cu."

And then Lancer Cu left, leaving Shirou and Rider Arturia Alter alone.

"Well then, shall we move on master?" Rider Arturia Alter asked.

"Y-Yeah."

And the two then moved forward inside the hallway. Eventually, they arrived at the cafeteria. However, there was a slight problem...for Shirou that is.

Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, Jaguar-man, and EMIYA and his counterpart were there.

And they had various reactions.

For Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, and Astraea, they looked at Rider Arturia Alter in jealously.

For Irisviel, she smiled as her plan was coming into place.

For Kiritsugu, he didn't show any reaction to Shirou and Rider Arturia Alter together.

And for Jaguar-man, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter, they were shocked as they saw Rider Arturia Alter with Shirou together.

For a moment, there was silence in the room but the tension was so thick it could even be cut.

Then Jaguar-man decided to speak out. "Um Shirou...what is this...?"

"Well...you see..." Shirou stuttered as he tried to put the current situation into good words.

However, before he could do so, Rider Arturia Alter spoke out first. "I am his maid."

Those words instantly turned the entire cafeteria go into chaos. "EHHHHHHHH?!" everyone beside Irisviel exclaimed in unison.

"Y-Yeah..." Shirou said.

"But how though?! How did this happen?!" Ishtar and her counterparts yelled.

"It was Irisviel's idea," Rider Arturia Alter replied calmly.

At that moment, everyone turned to Irisviel who still had a smile on her face.

"IRISVIEL/MAMA/MOM! WHY?!" they all exclaimed in unison.

Irisviel let out a chuckle. "What's wrong with a mother watching out for one of her sons' health?"

Everyone was dumbfounded with the answer Irisviel just gave. "What do you mean by that?" Arturia and her counterparts asked.

"Well, I was getting tired of Shirou overworking himself along with him telling me he's okay. However, in my eyes, I can see the stress that has accumulated over in his body. Hence, I came up with this plan.

"But still, why did you think of a solution like this?!" Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu asked.

"Yeah! There are other ways to solve a problem like that!" Parvati exclaimed along with Kama, BB, and her sisters nodded in approval.

"Also, why did you choose her?!" Astraea exclaimed as she pointed to Rider Arturia Alter, who was looking at her with a smug grin.

"Well obviously, I was the better choice out of all of you since I am a maid after all," Rider Arturia Alter replied as she held onto Shirou.

At that moment, nearly everyone besides Irisviel, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were almost about to separate Rider Arturia Alter from Shirou if not for Irisviel suddenly getting out of her seat and standing in front of Shirou and Rider Arturia Alter, separating the two groups.

"Now, now, let all of us calm down for a moment and figure out a solution, okay?"

Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, and Jaguar-man were still looking at Rider Arturia Alter angrily, making Irisviel sigh.

"I said...let all of us calm down for a moment and figure out a solution, okay?!" Irisviel said in a menacingly tone.

In an instant, everyone felt the anger in Irisviel's tone of voice and quickly complied to her orders. "Y-Yes," they all said in unison.

"Good." Irisviel then returned to her normal mood and went back to her seat with everyone else following her. As they did, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter had one thought in mind.

_"Scary..."_

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For the next few days, Rider Arturia Alter was fulfilling her duty as Shirou's maid.

Wherever Shirou went, she followed him.

Whenever Shirou was doing labor work, she helped him.

Whenever Shirou was exhausted, she helped him relax.

In fact, there were times where she would spoon feed him his meals or help him get dressed, which sparked jealously from her counterparts and everyone else.

Due to these acts, Shirou has been receiving some attention from the other servants and even some of them were jealous at them.

Not to mention the reactions from the other servants as well.

Lancer Cu's counterparts were surprised with Shirou's maid situation.

Medusa and her counterparts were also surprised with Shirou's maid situation.

Caster Medea was a bit jealous at Shirou.

Sasaki was amused with the situation and jokingly said he would want to be in the same situation as Shirou.

Hercules just roared at him.

Archer Gilgamesh was so jealous at Shirou's situation with Rider Arturia Alter that he tried to bribe Rider Arturia Alter to be his maid, but it failed as he ended up getting his ass kicked by her while his counterparts looked at him in disappointment.

Nero and her counterparts were interested with the whole maid getup and wanted to do it as well.

Jeanne D'Arc and her Alter Santa Lily counterpart were surprised while Jeanne D'Arc Alter was not amused with the situation, making Rider Arturia Alter giving her a smug face.

Okita was surprised while Okita Alter muttered that she wanted to try out being a maid, resulting in Okita just sighed at her counterpart's reaction.

Musashi's reaction was that she was in awe of it.

The Knights of the Round were surprised while Merlin had a smug look at Shirou.

Scathach and her counterpart were amused with the situation.

Arthur was surprised with the situation.

Jack, Nursery Rhyme, Abigail, and Paul were in awe with the entire situation.

Hakuno was surprised with this.

Waver was dumbfounded at the situation Shirou was in.

Ritsuka and Mashu were surprised at both the maid situation and how Irisviel came up with the plan.

Da Vinci laughed at the situation and gave Shirou a comment saying, "You've just fulfilled the dream of many teenage boys now." Shirou was confused with the comment Da Vinci made.

Right now, Shirou, Rider Arturia Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu were in a singularity, cleaning up the enemies inside the forest. "Well, it's been a few days since Rider Alter became my maid. Honestly, I did not expect to start that day with a maid in my room. And all of that was mom's idea..."

"Master? Are you done over there?" Rider Arturia Alter asked in the distance.

"Hm? Oh yeah, I'm done here Rider Alter," Shirou replied.

"Great. Now let's hurry up and head where everyone else is."

Soon, Shirou met up with Rider Arturia Alter and they headed towards to where Ritsuka and Mashu were. As they did, they were nearby at the entrance of a dragon's hideout.

"Okay? Remember the plan everyone?" Ritsuka asked.

"Y-Yes! All we need to do is to destroy the artifact the dragon have secured and that's it," Mashu replied.

"Good. Any questions?"

There was silence as everyone agreed to what the objective is.

"Great! Let's go then!"

And then Shirou, Rider Arturia Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu soon headed towards the dragon's hideout. Eventually, they arrived at the hideout, where it was empty.

"Looks like the dragon isn't here," Mashu said.

"Great. We can destroy the artifact with ease! Shirou?" Ritsuka said.

"Yes master," Shirou replied as he went up to the artifact and destroyed it with his sword, swinging it down on it as the artifact broke into pieces.

"Phew! Well, guess everything is over huh senpai?" Mashu asked.

"Wait, it's not over yet," Rider Arturia Alter said as she saw the dragon landing in front of them. The dragon then roared at the group with Mashu protecting Ritsuka while Rider Arturia Alter protecting Shirou. "See?"

"Everyone, move!" Ritsuka yelled out. And everyone split up into different directions as the dragon brought one of its hoofs down onto the ground.

However, as Rider Arturia Alter landed at the spot he was on, the dragon soon moved its tail quickly, preparing to strike Shirou.

"Master!" Rider Arturia Alter yelled as she moved to where Shirou was quickly and slashed the dragon's tail off, making it screech in pain. "Master, are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah," Shirou replied.

Rider Arturia Alter let out a small sigh. "Good. Now come on, we got a dragon to kill, so don't fall behind on me."

"Yeah."

Soon, the dragon turned its attention to Ritsuka and Mashu and then started breathing fire at the two. However, Mashu brought out her shield and protected herself and Ritsuka from the flames. It was then that Shirou and Rider Arturia Alter began an offensive assault on the dragon as Shirou began shooting swords at the dragon with his projected sword while Rider Arturia Alter injuring it with her mop.

The dragon howled in pain as it was forced back from all the injuries it received.

"Great! It's moving back everyone! Let's charge in and finish it off!" Ritsuka yelled.

However, at that moment, the dragon quickly turned its head towards Ritsuka and others and was about to claw him

In an instant, Shirou quickly moved in front of Ritsuka and the others and moved them, injuring himself in the process.

"Shirou/Shirou-san!" Ritsuka and Mashu yelled.

"Master!" Rider Arturia Alter yelled, worried about Shirou's safety.

"I'll be fine! More importantly, we need to strike the dragon on its head! Go!" Shirou yelled as he moved in front of the dragon, trying to distract it.

"Y-Yes!" Mashu replied. "Come on senpai!"

"Y-Yeah!" Ritsuka said.

Soon, Shirou, Rider Arturia Alter, Ritsuka, and Mashu soon began an assault on the dragon's head. As they did, the dragon raised on of its claws at Ritsuka, but Mashu blocked it with her shield.

It was then that Rider Arturia Alter used that encounter as an opportunity as she went up the dragon's wings and ran on it. As she did, she reached the dragon's head and held her mop up, reading to strike the head.

"HOW DARE YOU LAY YOUR CLAWS ON MY MASTER YOU DAMN DRAGON!" Rider Arturia Alter yelled as she stabbed the dragon's head with her mop, killing it instantly. The dragon let out a giant roar of pain as it felt the mop going through its skull, stopping it from breathing fire. The dragon soon fell to the ground as Rider Arturia Alter got off from the head and then hurried to where Shirou was. "Master, are you all right?"

"Y-Yeah. It's just a minor injury," Shirou replied.

Rider Arturia Alter let out a sigh. "Master, what you did was completely reckless you know," she said as she examined the injuries that Shirou received.

"Yeah. I know," Shirou replied.

"Knowing it is not going to help nor is it going to help you escape from the punishment that you'll be receiving later. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-Yeah," Shirou said nervously.

"Good. Now just stand still and let me heal your injuries."

As Rider Arturia Alter was healing Shirou's injuries, Ritsuka and Mashu were watching by the sidelines.

"Wow. I've never seen Rider Arturia Alter-san like that before..." Mashu said.

"Yeah. Well then again, Shirou does influence her..." Ritsuka replied.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

"Master, it's time to wake up."

Shirou moaned softly as he got out of bed, expecting to see Rider Arturia Alter...only to see Saber Arturia wearing a maid outfit.

"Um...Arturia...are you wearing..." Shirou said.

"Yes Shirou, and before you could ask, this was Irisviel's idea. And that included my counterparts as well."

Shirou sighed. Just how many plans did Irisviel make...


	54. Making Amends

Shirou let out a sigh as he sat down on a table in Chaldea's cafeteria. "Jeez, it's been a few weeks since I've seen Angra Mainyu and I've already attack him upon seeing him. Just what is master thinking of keeping him in Chaldea? That's the same god of darkness that caused the Great Fuyuki Fire in my world and nearly destroyed the world twice! Not to mention the fact that he also corrupted the Grail with his tainted mud, turning it into an item that only causes destruction. Also, why does he look like me for some reason?" he thought.

Not wanting to go even further into the question, Shirou then looked down at his meal. "Well, there's no point to think on an empty stomach. I guess I should eat now then." Shirou thought as he began to eat.

As Shirou was eating, a certain servant came into the room. Shirou noticed the servant in the room. "Oh, hey Archer. Or should I call you EMIYA?"

EMIYA sighed. "Just call me Archer. It feels weird being called as my last name by you."

"I can't blame you. It would be weird if I had a younger version of myself calling me by my own name," Shirou replied.

"And I hope that both of us will never go through that situation," EMIYA said as he sat next to Shirou. "So, what are you up to?"

"Hm? Oh, nothing much. Just trying to calm myself down."

"Really? You have a problem or something or someone?"

"Well...you could say that..." Shirou said as he didn't want to explain the situation about his first meeting at Angra Mainyu while he kept eating his meal to keep his mouth shut.

For a moment, EMIYA was confused with why his younger counterpart was trying to keep his mouth shut by eating the meal in front of him. He was also wondering what could possibly make his younger counterpart act unusual.

Then it hit him.

"I guess your situation has something to do with Angra Mainyu, doesn't it?" EMIYA blurted out.

Shirou nearly choked on the meal he was eating. Quickly, he grabbed a glass of water and started drinking it, clearing his throat.

"How did you know?" Shirou asked.

EMIYA let out a smirk. "Well, I am you after all. You're easy to read like a book."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Really?"

"Yeah. Anyways, what's your situation with Angra Mainyu?"

Shirou sighed again. "I attacked him when I first saw him."

"You too huh?"

Shirou then turned to EMIYA. "You did the same thing?"

"Yeah, and it was something I do not want to talk about..." EMIYA said as he began to tell the events of how he met Angra Mainyu in person for the first time...

_(Months earlier...)_

EMIYA was walking down the hallway, minding his own business. It was then that he saw Ritsuka with a new servant. "Hm? Master summon a new servant again...although why does he oddly look familiar? And this aura...why does it bother me so much?"

Soon, Ritsuka and the new servant soon came closer to EMIYA.

"Oh, hey Archer," Ritsuka greeted.

"Hey master. Who's the servant next to you?"

"Oh him? His name is Angra Mainyu."

Silence occurred between the three as EMIYA was trying to process what Ritsuka just said. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then EMIYA traced Kanshou and Bakuya and lunged himself towards at Angra Mainyu.

"Archer?! What are you doing?!"

"Stay out of this master. This servant shouldn't be here," EMIYA growled as he soon clashed with Angra Mainyu...

"Hey, hey, hey! What did I do to you!" Angra Mainyu yelled as he was attacked by EMIYA.

"Shut up!"

And a fight between EMIYA and Angra Mainyu started...

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's what happened," EMIYA said as he was finished with the story of the first time he met Angra Mainyu.

Shirou was shocked. "So, let me get this straight. Upon meeting Angra Mainyu for the first time, you immediately attacked him?"

"Yeah."

"How did it end?"

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Master unleashed a command seal on me, forcing the fight to end."

"I see...by any chance, did Arturia had the same reaction as you upon meeting him?"

"Yeah. From what I heard, the meeting between the two ended the same way as mine."

"Really?"

EMIYA nodded.

For a moment, Shirou and EMIYA were silent as both of them were trying to figure out how to continue the conversation. After a few minutes of silence, Shirou decided to speak out.

"You know, I'm wondering how in the root master managed to summon Angra Mainyu, the evil god of Zoroastrianism. Not to mention the fact that he's residing in Chaldea now! I mean, we're looking at the same person that caused the Great Fuyuki Fire and tainted the fourth and fifth Fuyuki Holy Grail Wars in our timelines! What is master thinking of keeping him here?!"

"Well here's the thing. This may sound funny coming from my mouth, but I think he isn't a threat at all," EMIYA said with a sigh.

Shirou was surprised at what EMIYA just said. "What?!"

"Yeah."

"Are you serious?"

"Trust me, even I'm surprised by this as well."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Well, after master forcibly ended the fight between me and Angra Mainyu, I spied on Angra Mainyu for the next few days to see if he was planning something or if he was being a threat to master. Surprisingly, he hasn't even done anything disastrous or wasn't a threat to master at all. There are cases where he did get into a few fights with other servants and such, but otherwise, he hasn't done anything at all."

Shirou was speechless at his future counterpart's words.

Angra Mainyu, the evil god of Zoroastrianism, the one who caused the Great Fuyuki Fire and tainted the holy grail in his world, not being a threat to Chaldea?

That was something Shirou did not expect.

"Hey, you okay?" EMIYA said, snapping Shirou out of it.

"Y-Yeah. I'm just surprised that Angra Mainyu is not doing anything bad here or being a threat to master. I mean, considering what he did to both me and you in the past, this is just a shock. In fact, this does bring up a question that's been bothering me for quite a while."

"What is it?"

"What caused him to be like this? What made Angra Mainyu? And why does he look like us?"

EMIYA shrugged. "Hey, it's not my business to find that out. If you want to find out, then do it yourself," he said as he soon left.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "That personality of Archer still hasn't changed..." he thought.

Soon, Shirou finished his meal and left the cafeteria, heading towards Chaldea's data room where the data of many servants were being recorded. Eventually, he arrived over there, went onto one of the computers, and searched up Angra Mainyu's profile.

_"Angra Mainyu...where is his profile...ah, there it is."_

Shirou then looked at Angra Mainyu's profile. Upon looking at it, he was shocked upon seeing his story.

Because his profile said this:

_Angra Mainyu, the evil god of Zoroastrianism. Also known as "All of the world's evils." However, he was just a villager who was freed from the confines of Order by having his name expelled from the Avesta, The Universal Revelation of Inscribed Creation. One day, he was randomly chosen as the "source of all evil in the world" by his village and was tortured and sacrificed in the ensuing rituals. The villagers, who were suffering from various disasters, eventually came to need a scapegoat for blaming their troubles onto. This scapegoat would be designated to be a daemon and be chosen to be the reason for all the calamities afflicting the village. Simultaneously, he would be chosen to be the source of all the world's evil and by his existence, the villagers would have to be good by nature._

_So, they continuously tortured him until he went insane. They captured him, beat him, carved every word that cursed mankind onto his body, forced every sin imaginable upon him, took out bits and pieces of him slowly, defiled his mind with absolute evil, and held him responsible for all of it in the world. They would not allow him to die until he succumbed to old age. He had a curse put on him as a result, one made of the great evil that he was to represent. He was shocked at first at the senselessness of it at all. Eventually he started wondering who it was he should hate. However, Avenger himself only felt anger and hatred towards the world and the people that mercilessly executed him. His forced sacrifice eased the confused minds of his people, which despite being unintentional, qualified him to become a Heroic Spirit._

_He only despised mankind of his own accord during the first few years, but after that, the hate became a natural function for him rather than an emotion; hate was the state he was always in, so it was only natural for him to continue hating everything without any other reason. By that time, he forgave and tolerated humanity for whatever sins they may cause while hating them. The world is worth hating. The imbalances were evened out by his hatred, so the people could be absolved of all guilt and live freely. But that kind of "forgiveness" is also the same type that validates any good or evil that humans may perform._

_Yet as the time passed by and he saw many rises and fall of generations, he realized that while he still hated humans for what they did, he still loved the world. Of course, the people that put him up there, his family, his loved ones, the people he hated, died long before he did. The village changed over the generations, expanding, declining; people reviled him, people feared him, people scorned him, and yet they revered him as the sign of their salvation. But he could do nothing but hate, since that was the only thing he could communicate to the world. In the end, he accepted his role for humanity, even if it meant to be the blame for their wrongdoings._

_As he watched the world for millennia, his name, his body, and his soul eroded away, leaving only his raw emotion of hatred behind. This hatred remains watching the human world and will do so until its very end._

As Shirou was done reading his profile, Shirou was baffled with what Angra Mainyu went through.

_"Wow, I did not expect this..."_

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Angra Mainyu was in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms, minding his own business. "Well, today seems to be a normal day. I got my daily dose of soda, there's no missions for me to do, and there's no one that's going to bother me. Hope this day doesn't go bad on me..." he thought.

However, as soon as he thought of that, the one person that scares him has arrived in the room.

"Aw come on..." Angra Mainyu thought as Shirou came into the room. "What do you want?" he asked as he got out of the sofa he was sitting on.

"Relax Angra Mainyu, I'm not here for a fight."

Angra Mainyu didn't believe him. "How so? Do you have any proof?"

"Trust me. At least I didn't attack you on first sight unlike last time, remember?"

Angra Mainyu then gave Shirou's statement some thought. "True. At least he's introducing himself this time unlike what happened last time...guess this won't hurt..." he thought as he went back to sit on the sofa. Shirou then did the same as well. "So, what do you want?"

Shirou took a deep breath before saying what he wanted to say. "I feel bad for you."

Angra Mainyu was shocked upon hearing Shirou's statement. "What did you just say?"

"I said I feel bad for you," Shirou repeated.

At that point, Angra Mainyu was wondering if he was in a dream or not. He then slapped himself on the face, checking to see if this was a dream or now.

And it was not.

"Whoa. What brought that up?" Angra Mainyu asked.

"Well, let's just say...I know a bit about your past," Shirou replied.

Angra Mainyu sighed. "So, you read my profile, didn't you?"

"Yeah. And I just want to say-" Shirou said but was cut off from Angra Minyu.

"No need. I already know what you were about to say. And for the record, yes. I did hate the villagers for what they did to me at one point. All the curses they placed on me...all that pain from them...even now it still hurts to even think about it. However, I got over it eventually as time passed by. However, that didn't mean that I forgave them for what they did. I still hated them, but that's what I am. A god of evil and hatred. And I'm okay with that."

"Angra Mainyu..."

"So Emiya Shirou, if you still hate me, then continue to hate me. But you know, I'll continue to live as long as there hatred around in this world."

For a moment, Shirou was silent upon hearing Angra Mainyu's words. Then after a few minutes of gathering his thoughts, he gave his answer.

"Well then, that's the one thing we'll both agree on."

"And what would that be?"

"Hating you."

Angra Mainyu laughed at Shirou's answer. "Good answer. Well then, I'll be leaving then. Goodbye Emiya Shirou."

However, before he could leave, Shirou stopped him to ask one more question.

"Wait. Before you leave, there's one more thing I want to ask. Why do you look like me?"

Angra Mainyu let out a sigh.

"Here's the thing...multiverse theory is a bitch..."


	55. Halloween Costume

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Happy Halloween! (Even though we're still stuck in quarantine until maybe early 2021...)
> 
> Anyways, hope all of you enjoy this chapter!

_Halloween, the day where kids dress up in costumes, go around to other people's houses, and ask for candy by saying, "Trick or Treat."_

_And in Chaldea, the servants also celebrate Halloween too. Especially the kids._

_In the case where the servants would dress up in costumes and would join at the yearly Halloween party._

_However, for Emiya Shirou, Halloween would be quite a long process for him._

_In which a few certain servants have a bunch of costumes for him to wear..._

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking in Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business. As he was walking, he remembered that Halloween was coming up soon. "Halloween huh? I've heard about it, but I never celebrated it before. To be fair, my old man wasn't the person who would hold a party and dress up...and plus, he wasn't in good condition to do so..." he thought. Eventually, Shirou continued walking.

However, it was that something unexpected happened.

Because in an instant, Shirou was suddenly dragged into a room as a door suddenly opened, a hand grabbing him.

"What the heck?!" Shirou thought as he was dragged into a room that happened to be next to him. Eventually, the hand let go of Shirou, making him fall to the ground. Shirou then looked up to see who grabbed him.

It was Da Vinci, and she looked like she hasn't slept for days. Not only that, but in the room were Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter. There was also a makeshift stage as well.

"Da Vinci? Everyone?" Shirou said.

"Hey there...Shirou," Da Vinci moaned from the lack of sleep.

"Hey Shirou/Emiya-kun/senpai/onii-chan/Sherou..."

"Uh Da Vinci, what's going on? And why did you drag me here? And why is everyone else here?"

"Well...it's a long story..." Da Vinci replied as she began to retell events that happened earlier...

_(A few days ago...)_

Da Vinci was working in her workshop, thinking of something to do. "Hm...wonder what should I do today? Maybe a new mystic code? Or should I make a new painting like the old days? Or maybe just relax?" As she was thinking, she heard a few knocks from her door. "Hm. Wonder who could that be? I'm not expecting someone today," she thought. She then got out of the chair she was sitting on and headed towards the door. As she did, she shocked at what was at her front door.

It was a bunch of servants and they were Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, and Irisviel.

Da Vinci was shocked to see this many people in front of her room. "Uh...hello...everyone?"

"Hello Da Vinci," they all said in unison.

Da Vinci sighed. "Anyways, what are all of you doing here?"

"Da Vinci, we have a favor to ask for you," Irisviel asked.

"What kind of favor would that be?"

It was then that Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, and Irisviel brought out papers and handed to them to Da Vinci. Da Vinci then grabbed them and looked at them. As she did, she was surprised with what the papers contained.

Because the papers were designs of various mystic codes in the form of outfits.

"This...this is...?" Da Vinci said as she was speechless from the designs.

"Yes. We want you to make all of these," Irisviel said.

"But why though?"

For a moment, things were silent between Da Vinci and the giant group of servants. Then in an instant, all the female servants yelled at Da Vinci.

"I WANT SHIROU/EMIYA-KUN/SENPAI/ONII-CHAN/SHEROU TO WEAR THESE MYSTIC CODES FOR HALLOWEEN THIS YEAR!" they all exclaimed in unison.

Da Vinci let out a sigh. "This definitely feels like déjà vu all over again...and I have a good feeling that this will turn out to be the same thing as last time...but at least this does solve the problem of what to do for today..." she thought.

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's why I dragged you here Shirou," Da Vinci said as she was done recalling the events that led up to this point.

Shirou let out a sigh. "So, let me get this straight. Because of Halloween that's coming up soon, Arturia and her counterparts, Tohsaka and her counterparts, Sakura and her counterparts, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Luvia, and mom came to you with multiple designs of mystic codes for me to wear on Halloween?"

"Yes."

"And you're telling me that for the last few days, you've been up all night making those mystic codes?

"Yes."

"Wow. Just how many did you have to make?"

Da Vinci let out a sigh. "Honestly, I made so much of them that I lost count, and that's probably for the best. If I knew, then I would pass out from the amount I knew already."

"I see. And I suppose you want me to-" Shirou said but he was cut off from Da Vinci.

"Wear them? Yes. And you can't refuse Shirou. Every one of those servants here wanted to see you in the mystic codes they designed for me to make. Not to mention the fact that everyone here wants to see it," Da Vinci continued as she moaned from the lack of sleep.

"All right."

"Good. Now just go behind the curtain over there. There should be a pile of mystic codes for you to wear. Once you wear one, stand on the stage for me to see so I can take a photo of it." Shirou then went behind the curtain. As he did, he was in awe over how many mystic codes Da Vinci made. "Wow, you weren't kidding..."

Meanwhile, Da Vinci let out a sigh. "I hope that the girls over there are satisfied with the amount of work I put in the designs gave me. It took a lot of work to make these you know! Jeez, I could use some coffee right now..." she thought.

"I can't believe we're doing this..." EMIYA said while waiting.

"Me neither..." EMIYA Alter said.

"Come on! Don't you want to see your younger self in the mystic codes me and the others designed?" Irisviel asked happily.

"No."

"Yeah. No."

Irisviel let out a pout. "You boys are mean to your younger self..."

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Anyways, sorry that you were dragged along in this old man."

Kiritsugu let out a sigh. "It's okay. I'm already used to Iri's shenanigans by now...speaking of which, what's with the camera Iri?"

"Obviously to take photos of course," Irisviel replied cheerfully.

"Figures..."

"Shhh! Shirou's coming out of the curtain now! Arturia and her counterparts said.

"Yeah! Be quiet! I want to see Emiya-kun in the outfit we designed for him!" Ishtar and her counterparts said.

"Wonder if Senpai liked the mystic code..." Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters said.

"Kya! I want to see Sherou is my mystic code now!" Astraea yelled.

"Shh! Be quiet! We want to see too, so be quiet!" Illya and her counterparts said along with Miyu.

Irisviel smiled. "Let the show begin!"

Soon, Shirou came out from the curtain, wearing a mystic code that looked like a knight's apparel. The mystic code he was wearing bared a similarity to Arthur Pendragon's armor in which it looked like the standard armor of a knight. The armor parts are silver in color and the tunics part are blue. He also has a black and white hood attached to the back of the armor part of his neck.

"This armor, it looks familiar to Arthur's armor. I'm pretty sure that Arturia and her counterparts came up with this. In fact, it feels like armor too," Shirou thought as he examined it.

As Shirou was wearing the knight mystic code, everyone besides Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were in awe over how good it looked on Shirou.

Especially Arturia and her counterparts.

"Wow..." Arturia said in awe.

"Hmph. As expected from my queen. He looks good in that," Arturia Alter said with a smirk on her face.

"Wow! Shirou looks cool in that!" Arturia Lily exclaimed excitedly.

"Definitely. He looks like a member of the Knights of the Round," Lancer Arturia said proudly.

"Exactly. If this were real, I would appoint him as a member as well," Lancer Arturia Alter replied.

"As do I," Ruler Arturia said.

"Wow. Shirou in a knight's armor looks well on him," Archer Arturia said.

"Yes. The design of the armor seems to be a best match with Shirou's body type," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"And not to mention the fact over how the colors match him as well," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Indeed. I'm glad this ended up becoming a perfect match for him," Caster Arturia said.

"Hm...even though the armor may seem a bit old fashioned in my tastes, it still looks good on him," Mysterious Heroine X said.

"Yes. I wish there were some wings on there. Or some cannons," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"To be fair, that mystic code is supposed to look like a knight's armor from the middle ages. It isn't like that mystic code that turns Shirou into a...well...what did master call it again?" Mysterious Heroine XX said.

"Gundam," Mysterious X and X Alter replied.

"Yes. Thank you."

Soon Shirou then returned to the curtain to change out of the mystic code he was wearing. As he was changing, Ishtar started to have a conversation.

"Wow. So that's what Emiya-kun looks like when he's wearing armor..." Ishtar said.

"Yeah. I didn't expect him to see him like that..." Rider Ishtar said.

"Ohohohohohohohoho! Obviously, you useless goddesses have no idea how Sherou looks good in anything he wears!" Astraea exclaimed.

"Why you-!" Ishtar and her rider counterpart exclaimed, preparing to start a fight.

Ereshkigal let out a sigh. "Will you two calm down? Shirou's changing into a new mystic code now."

Upon hearing that, Ishtar and her rider counterpart silenced themselves and went back to look at the screen, hoping that the next mystic code Shirou was about to wear was their design. Shirou then came out of the curtain and in an instant, Ishtar and her counterparts' moods lit up in excitement.

As Shirou got out of the curtain, the mystic code he was wearing consisted of a black shirt, a black trench coat jacket, white gloves, black pants, and black shoes. He was also wearing a red shroud around his neck.

"This outfit...did Tohsaka thought of this during my time in London? Well, she did outdid herself in this. Every detail is here," Shirou thought as he examined the outfit.

"Ishtar, what outfit is this?" Arturia asked.

Ishar let out a prideful sigh. "This is the outfit Emiya-kun wore during his time as a part-time enforcer."

"Really?"

"Yeah, and even now it still looks good on him," Rider Ishtar said.

"And we copied it perfectly from detail to detail," Ereshkigal said proudly.

"Wow..."

"Tch. Not bad Ishtar, but when Sherou wears my mystic code, it will blow yours away!" Astraea exclaimed.

"Hmph. We'll see," Ishtar said.

Meanwhile, EMIYA and his counterpart were having flashbacks from the outfit Shirou was wearing.

"That outfit...I thought I never get to see that again..." they thought in unison.

Soon, Shirou went back to the curtain and changed out of the mystic code he was wearing into a new one. Soon, Shirou then came out of the curtain, wearing a new mystic code. The mystic code he was wearing was a red kimono with a white umanori hakama, zori and white tabi.

As Shirou appeared wearing the new mystic code, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters were satisfied with the result while everyone was surprised with the design they went for.

"Whose mystic code is that?" Arturia asked.

"That's ours's," Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters said in unison.

"You went for Japanese clothes Parvati?" Ishtar asked Parvati.

"Yes. I figured they work well on senpai," Parvati replied.

"I see. I thought you would go for Indian clothes," Ereshkigal said.

"Nah. This looks better on him than what we came up earlier," Kama said.

"Exactly. Although I did want him to wear the school uniform of Tsukumihara Academy..." BB said.

"Hey, you win some, you lose some big sister..." Passionlip said.

"Exactly. And plus, the colors go well with him," Meltlilith said.

"Yes. The combination between the colors and clothes make the outfit look well on Shirou," Kingprotea said as she along with her sisters, Parvati, and Kama admired the mystic code they created.

Meanwhile, Shirou was having a few thoughts of his own. "Sakura and her counterparts came up with this? Well, this is a surprise," he thought.

After a few minutes of wearing the kimono mystic code and allowing everyone else to see, Shirou then went back to the curtain and changed out of it. Meanwhile, everyone besides Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were waiting in anticipation over who's mystic code Shirou will wear next.

"Wonder which mystic code onii-chan is going to wear next?" Illya said.

"Hm...maybe either ours's, Luvia's, or mama's mystic code," Kuro replied.

"That's right. Hope the next one is ours," Sitonai said.

"Me too," Miyu said.

Soon, Shirou then came out of the curtain, wearing a new mystic code. As he got out, Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu brighten up immediately because the mystic code Shirou was wearing was theirs. As Shirou got out of the curtain, the mystic code he was wearing resembled the outfit EMIYA was wearing. However, there were a few adjustments as he was wearing a headband and being sleeveless on his right arm. Everyone was amazed with how well the outfit went with Shirou. Then again, he's the younger version of EMIYA.

However, EMIYA and EMIYA Alter were not amused and nearly freaked out upon seeing their younger self wear the same costume as them with a few adjustments.

"Illya, what is the meaning of this..." EMIYA asked.

"Hm? What? That's the mystic code costume me, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu came up with.

"Yeah, but why...of all of the designs...you had to choose that one?!" EMIYA Alter asked.

"Well...it just looks cool. And plus, Miyu came up with it," Kuro said.

"Exactly. Since you and onii-chan are the same person, I thought the onii-chan could wear the same outfit you wear, with a few modifications," Miyu said.

"Is that so?" EMIYA asked.

"Yes. And because of Miyu, we get to see what would happen when onii-chan wears the same clothes as you. And as expected, it looks good on him. Right everyone?" Sitonai asked.

Everyone else nodded as well. Upon seeing their reactions, both EMIYA and EMIYA Alter sighed as there was no point arguing them as they knew how pushy Rin, or rather Ishtar and her counterparts can be.

"Well? What do you think?" EMIYA Alter asked.

EMIYA sighed. "At least he hasn't made the same mistakes as us, so I'm okay with this...for the most part."

Meanwhile, Shirou was having thoughts about the mystic code he was wearing. "Wow. I can't believe Illya and the others made a variation of Archer's outfit. Not that I don't mind or anything. So this is what Archer's clothes feels like..."

Soon, Shirou was done with the mystic code costume Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu made and went over to the curtain to change into another mystic code. After a few minutes of changing, Shirou then came out wearing a new mystic code. The mystic code Shirou was now wearing looked like he was wearing a white top hat with a blue-ribbon band. His right eye is covered by a white monocle that has a dangling green charm with a white clover imprinted on it. The outfit itself was a white suit jacket on top of a blue shirt with a red tie and white dress slacks, a white cape, and white Oxford style shoes with white soles.

Astraea let out a giant grin on her face as she saw Shirou wearing the mystic code she designed for him. "Look at this! Look at the design of the mystic code I made for Sherou! Isn't it gorgeous?"

Everyone then looked at the mystic code Shirou was wearing and were fascinated by the design of it. Especially Irisviel since it was almost completely white, like her outfit.

"This mystic code...it feels like a gentleman's outfit..." Shirou thought.

"Astraea, where did you come up with this idea?" Irisviel asked.

"Hmph! Let me tell you! The idea came from a man that was a legendary magician and a master of escape!" Astraea replied.

"Is that so?"

"Yes!"

Irisviel then let out a small sigh and continued looking at the mystic code. Eventually, Shirou returned to the curtain and changed mystic codes. After a few minutes of changing, Shirou came out wearing a new mystic code. However, the mystic code Shirou was wearing shocked everyone, especially Arturia and her counterparts, Illya and her counterparts, and EMIYA and EMIYA Alter.

Because the mystic code Shirou was wearing looked like the clothes of Emiya Kiritsugu, the Magus Killer.

"Wah! My mystic code is up now!" Irisviel exclaimed excitedly.

Arturia and her counterparts along with EMIYA and EMIYA Alter turned to Irisviel. "Irisviel, you made that mystic code?" Arturia asked.

"Yes!"

"But why though? Why did you choose that outfit?" EMIYA asked.

"Well...I wanted to see my son wear his father's clothes. Is there a problem with that?" Irisviel asked.

"Well, no. It just...brings back...some memories..." EMIYA Alter said.

"Yeah. I never thought I get to see that outfit again...and on onii-chan nether less..." Sitonai said.

Irisviel smiled. "Well, what do you think?"

"Hm...the outfit itself is giving me some memories I don't want to remember...but if Shirou is wearing it, then I don't mind," Arturia said.

"Yeah. Onii-chan does look good in it," Sitonai said.

It was then that EMIYA and EMIYA Alter looked at Kiritsugu, who was looking at Shirou. "Old man?" they asked in unison.

"Hmm...I'll admit, it does look good on him," Kiritsugu said, shocking EMIYA and EMIYA Alter.

"So, this is what the old man used to wear..." Shirou thought as he glanced at the outfit.

Soon Shirou left the stage and headed towards the curtain. As he did, everyone besides Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were a little sad as they thought that there were no more mystic codes for Shirou to wear.

"Well, that's over," EMIYA said.

"Yeah. Now we can get back to what we were doing," EMIYA Alter said.

"Wah...it's over already...at least I have pictures of them..." Irisviel said.

"Yeah...I want to see onii-chan wear more mystic codes..." Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu said.

"As do I," Astraea said.

"Me too," Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters said.

"Same..." Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal said.

However, Arturia's altered counterparts had a smirk on their faces, raising some questions between the groups of people.

"Why do they have that smirk on their faces? I've got a bad feeling about this..." they thought in unison.

Meanwhile, Shirou was looking at the last mystic code, and was surprised at it. "This outfit...I did not expect this..." he thought.

After a few seconds, Shirou finished changing into the new mystic code and proceeded to head out. However, within the next second, everything was clear why Arturia's altered counterparts had a smirk on their faces.

Because at that moment, Shirou came out of the curtain, wearing a mystic code that was like the first one, but in different colors. The armor's color was black instead of white, the tunic was in red instead of blue, and the hood was in black instead of white. Not only that, but Shirou was also wearing a black visor like Arturia Alter's.

Everyone was shocked at what they just saw, especially Arturia and her non-altered counterparts.

"D-Did you-" Arturia stammered as she was speaking to her altered counterpart.

"Yes. Me, Lancer Alter, Rider Alter, Santa Alter, and Mysterious Heroine X Alter came up with this in secret. And I say, it looks marvelous on him," Arturia Alter replied in a smug tone of voice.

"I agree," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Yes. He looks like a black knight now..." Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Indeed. The way Shirou looks in that armor...it looks magnificent," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"Definitely," Santa Arturia Alter said.

For a moment, everyone was stunned at how Arturia's altered counterparts had a head start on them. Then Arturia and her non-altered counterparts started a conversation.

"Since when did all of you created that?!" Arturia and her non-altered counterparts yelled.

"At the same time when we were designing the first mystic code," Arturia Alter, Lancer Arturia Alter, Rider Arturia Alter, Santa Arturia Alter, and Mysterious Heroine X Alter replied.

"Hey! It's not fair that Arturia and her counterparts has two mystic codes for onii-chan to wear!" Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu said.

"That's right! Each group only had one mystic code for EMIYA-kun to wear, and you have two made for him!" Ishtar, her rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal said.

"Not only that, why did you go with those colors?! They don't match with Sherou!" Astraea exclaimed.

"Exactly!" Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters said.

Arturia Alter, Lancer Arturia Alter, Rider Arturia Alter, Santa Arturia Alter, and Mysterious Heroine X Alter looked at the angry groups with a smug grin on their faces. "Hey, you snooze, you lose," they said in unison.

Soon, Shirou got off the stage and headed towards the curtain. As he did, he changed back into his regular clothes and headed towards where Irisviel was. It was then that Irisviel asked him a question that created a storm. "So Shirou, which mystic code are you going to wear?"

"Hm...honestly, I'm not sure. I can feel that everyone put hard work in all of them. Each one of them are good, so it's hard to choose," Shirou replied.

It was then that Arturia's altered counterparts let out a confident sigh. "Obviously, he'll be wearing mine," they said.

Which everyone else...did not take it well.

"No! He's wearing mine!" Arturia and her non-altered counterparts replied in anger.

"Now hold on a second! Sherou is going to wear my mystic code!" Astraea said.

"Not on your life! He's going to wear mine!" Ishtar, her counterparts, and Ereshkigal replied.

"I want onii-chan to wear the mystic code we created!" Illya and her counterparts said along with Miyu.

"No! Senpai must wear my mystic code!" Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters replied.

Soon, a fight broke out between the groups of girls over who's mystic code Shirou will wear for Halloween. Meanwhile, Irisviel chucked at the fight while Shirou, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, and Da Vinci watched the fight in silence.

"Oh my, guess now we have a fight over which mystic code my son gets to wear," Irisviel said with a smile.

"Iri..." Kirtsugu said.

Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, and Da Vinci didn't say anything. However, they have one thought in mind.

_"This is going to be a long day..."_

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

Nero and her counterparts were walking in one of Chaldea's hallways, minding their own business. As they were walking, they came across a picture on the ground.

"Hm? What is this?" Nero asked.

"Umu! That's a photo," Caster Nero replied.

"Wonder what's in the photo though..." Bride Nero said.

As Nero flipped the photo over, what she saw surprised her along with her counterparts.

It was a photo of Shirou wearing the knight mystic code.

And in an instant, Nero and her counterparts were in awe over how amazing he looked in it.

"Oh my! It's one of my praetors! And in knight armor never less!" Nero said with a grin on her face.

"The design of the armor...it looks great on him!" Bride Nero said.

"Umu! The armor itself could use some red! That would make it even more beautiful!" Caster Nero said.

"I agree with you! Let's go ask Da Vinci later!" Nero and Bride Nero replied.

And they headed off for Da Vinci's workshop...

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jeanne D'Arc was walking with her Alter Santa Lily counterpart, trying to find Jeanne D'Arc Alter. Eventually, they found her in one of Chaldea's recreation rooms, and she was staring at something.

"Hello there little sister!" Jeanne D'Arc said.

Jeanne D'Arc quickly turned to see her non-altered counterpart along with her Santa Lily counterpart coming towards her. She tried to hide the photo she was seeing but failed as they managed to reach her before she could hide it. "H-Hey."

"Hey there older me, what are you doing?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily asked.

"Ah, well uh...nothing," Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied as she tried to hide the photo she was holding.

However, Jeanne D'Arc noticed that her altered counterpart was holding something. "What is that in your hand?"

"N-None of your business!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter replied, refusing to show them the photo. However, it was then that Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily quickly grabbed the photo from her hands. "Hey!"

"Wah! It's a picture of Shirou-san as a hooded dark knight! How did you get this?"

"I want to know as well," Jeanne D'Arc said.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter let out a sigh. "Well, this is going to be a long day...and whoever made that costume for him...thanks for giving me inspiration..." she thought.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Okita was walking down the hallway, minding her own business. As she did, she ended up seeing her altered counterpart, who was looking at something intensely. "Hm? What is alter me doing over there? Maybe I should look and see..." Okita then went over to see what her altered counterpart was looking at. "Hey there alter me."

"Hm? Oh, hey there unaltered me," Okita Alter replied.

"What are you doing?"

"Oh nothing. Just looking at this picture of Shirou in a kimono."

That got Okita a little bit interested. "Shirou-san in a kimono? Hm...it wouldn't hurt to peek at the photo..." Okita then looked at the photo and in an instant, she was in awe over how natural Shirou looked in the Kimono. "Wow..." she thought.

Then Musashi then came by. "Hey there Okita! Okita Alter!"

"Hm? Oh, hey Musashi," Okita Alter said.

"What are you two doing?" Musashi asked as she came closer.

"Taking a look at Shirou in a kimono," Okita Alter replied.

That got Musashi interested. "Shirou-kun in a kimono? That sounds interesting! I want to see now!" Musashi then went to see the photo of Shirou in a kimono and like Okita before her, she was in awe. "W-Wow, Shirou-kun looks amazing in that..." she thought.

And the three swordswomen stared at the photo...for a while...


	56. The Fear of Shots

Normally, Chaldea isn't a scary place for servants to live in. Usually, it's full of servants having fun with each other...for the most part.

However, when it's time for the yearly immunization treatment...

It's hell for everyone.

And Shirou was about to learn that the hard way...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was in Chaldea's cafeteria, cooking for Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, and Jaguar-man.

And alongside him were EMIYA and EMIYA Alter, who were helping him.

"Hey, is the next dish done yet?" EMIYA asked.

"Yeah. It's right here," Shirou replied as he handed him the dish.

EMIYA nodded in agreement and gave the dish to one of Arturia's counterparts, in which she quickly gobbled it down. EMIYA let out a small sigh. "No matter which Saber is which, there's one thing that they have in common, and that is that they are able to finish food quickly," he thought.

"Hey. Where's that order of soup?" EMIYA Alter asked, snapping EMIYA out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, here it is," EMIYA replied as he handed his altered counterpart a bowl of soup. EMIYA Alter nodded in response and handed a patron the soup.

All and all, everything at the cafeteria seemed normal.

However, the mood changed as Ritsuka came into the room with a face of horror on him. Alongside him was Mashu who was worried.

"Master?" Shirou asked.

"Hey there...Shirou..." Ritsuka muttered in a tone of voice that sounded like there was no hope for him.

"Master, is there a problem?"

"Well, Shirou...let me just say this...the flu season is coming...and Nightingale wants all of us to get our shots as a precaution," Ritsuka moaned in despair.

"Nightingale? You mean the head nurse of Chaldea medical's facility?"

"Yes."

"And she wants everyone here to get a flu shot just in case?"

"That's right Shirou-san," Mashu replied.

"Well okay, but what's with your mood master? You don't seem so happy about it. Is getting flu shots that bad for you?" Shirou asked.

For a moment, Ritsuka was silent from Shirou's question. Then he started to chuckle humorlessly.

"Master? Is there something wrong?"

Ritsuka put a hand on Shirou's shoulder. "Shirou, you have no idea how scary Nightingale is when it comes to getting shots from her..." he muttered before he left.

"Ah! Before I leave, Shirou-san, you need to check over this questionnaire before you get the shot. After you finish the questionnaire, head over to the medical facility to receive the shot," Mashu said as she handed Shirou a piece of paper.

"I see. Thanks, Mashu."

"No problem Shirou-san!" Mashu then left the cafeteria, leaving Shirou to ponder over a few things.

"A flu shot huh? Didn't know that Chaldea had that type of thing since well, most of the staff here are servants. Although why did master look like that during the entire conversation?"

However, when Shirou turned his attention back to the cafeteria, he was in quite of a shock at the scenery in front of him.

In which Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, and surprisingly Kiritsugu, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were either face planting on the table or on the floor in despair.

"No...not the shots...NOT THE SHOTS!" Arturia yelled.

"The shots...why now of all days..." Arturia Alter muttered.

"Shots huh...I would rather deal with Merlin than this..." Arturia Lily muttered.

"Me too..." Lancer Arturia replied in agreement with Lily.

"I agree. At least Merlin doesn't do shots on us..." Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"I would rather work in the casino overnight than get a shot..." Rutler Arturia muttered.

"Great. Today's the day of my demise..." Archer Arturia moaned.

"I don't want to go...even if I get a burger after this..." Rider Arturia Alter moaned.

"A santa doesn't deserve a shot..." Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Remember, you killed saber-faces before. Getting a shot is nothing..." Mysterious Heroine X muttered.

"Remember, happy thoughts, happy thoughts, happy thoughts..." Mysterious Heroine X Alter muttered.

"I should ask bigger pay from master later..." Mysterious Heroine XX muttered.

"Wah! What's wrong everyone?!" Caster Arturia asked as she was clueless with what her counterparts were saying.

"Why...WHY NOW THAT WE'RE GETTING THE SHOTS?!" Ishtar yelled in despair.

"I would rather have goldie bully me..." Rider Ishtar muttered.

"I would rather stay in the underworld..." Ereshkigal muttered.

"Why does the world hate me...I don't want to go through that again..." Parvati muttered in despair.

"I would rather be scolded by master again..." Kama said.

"Me being punished with shots...BB-chan doesn't like this..." BB muttered in despair.

"I would rather get punished than get a shot..." Passionlip said.

"Great. A shot...well shit," Meltlilith muttered.

"Not the shots again..." Kingprotea said.

"Please...anything, ANYTHING BUT THE SHOTS!" Illya yelled.

"Wow...the shots again...I would rather deal with the blood curse..." Kuro muttered.

"If I knew this was going to happen, I should have brought Shirou over for comfort..." Sitonai muttered.

"Remember, A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease. A vaccine typically contains an agent that resembles a disease-causing microorganism and is often made from weakened or killed forms of the microbe, its toxins, or one of its surface proteins," Miyu said as she tried to calm herself by saying what a shot is.

"Remember, the shots can't hurt you, the shots can't hurt you, the shots can't hurt you..." Astraea muttered as she was on the floor.

"Well...looks like I'm going to die..." Jaguar-man moaned in despair as she was on the floor.

"Well...it's been a good time here in Chaldea...looks like this is my end huh?" Irisviel moaned.

Kiritsugu didn't say anything as he pointed his Thompson Contender at himself.

EMIYA started praying. "Namoanita-bhaya. Namoanita-bhaya. Namoanita-bhaya."

EMIYA Alter did the same thing as Kiritsugu was doing and pointed Kanshou and Bakuya at himself.

Shirou was surprised at the display of behavior from everyone. "What the heck?! Why is everyone acting so strange with the shots?! Are the shots that scary?! Or did I miss something here?! Did something happen before I arrived here?!" he thought.

"Um...Shirou, do you have any idea what's going on here?" Caster Arturia asked as she was confused with what was going on around her.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Honestly, I'm not so sure."

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Throughout the whole day, everyone in Chaldea was in despair because of the recent event about learning that today was immunization day.

And that included not only that staff of Chaldea, but also the servants as well.

Shirou realized that as he was walking in the hallway of Chaldea towards the medical facility, preparing himself to get a shot.

Because as he was walking, he noticed nearly every servant he passed by was in fear of the upcoming shots. "Okay, this is crazy. Nearly any servant I pass by are in fear of the upcoming shots! Are the shots really that bad here?!" he thought.

As he continued walking, he then came across Lancer Cu, who was huddling in hear in a corner of the wall. "Cu?" Shirou said as he came up to him.

Lancer Cu jumped up in fear upon hearing his name being called. "Gah!" he shrieked as he turned around. As he saw Shirou, he sighed in relief. "Phew, it's you kid. Damn, don't scare me like that!" he said as he got up.

"Cu. Why is everyone here acting so strange? Ever since the reminder about all of us getting shots came out, everyone's on edge."

Lancer Cu let out a sigh. "Well kid, you may not know this, but when it comes to getting shots from her, let's just say...the experience is so horrific that we would rather wish we were sent back to the Throne of Heroes."

Shirou's eyes widen upon hearing what Lancer Cu said. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah. And it is not pretty either," Lancer Cu said as he began to retell a story about the last time everyone in Chaldea had shots from her...

_(A year ago...)_

Lancer Cu was shivering in his tights as he was in a line that headed towards the medicial facility, preparing to get a shot. "Man, this is scary. Maybe even on par with training from Shishou...wait, I don't want to remind that," he thought.

As he was waiting in line, he then peaked at the medical room, hoping to see who was in there before him.

It was then that he saw something that would shock him.

"You mongrel! How dare you try to leave a scratch on this king's body! I won't forgive you for this!" Archer Gilgamesh yelled.

"Oh shut up and give me your arm," Nightingale said.

"Like I will!" Archer Gilgamesh said as he proceeded to get out of the seat he was in...only for a bunch of chains and restrains to suddenly appear and lock him to his seat. "What the?! What is this?!"

"This is what I do to patients who don't listen to me."

"How dare you! I will kill you for this you mongrel!" Archer Gilgamesh yelled in anger.

"I don't care. Okay, now I will need to rip this armor of yours off."

Lancer Cu was shocked at what he just heard. "Really?! The King of Heroes is even wearing his armor now?! Jeez, just what is going on in there?!" he thought.

"Hey! You cannot take my armor off!"

"I don't care," Nightingale said as she proceeds to rip out Gilgamesh's armor into pieces, even surprising him. "All right, now it's time for your shots," she said as she brought out multiple syringes from the countertop.

For once, Gilgamesh was scared from the amount of syringes Nightingale just pulled out. "W-Wait!"

"No need to."

Then in an instant, Nightingale began to give Gilgamesh his shots, which made him start screaming and struggling like crazy, making Cu scared.

_"Great. Looks like I'm going to die soon..."_

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's why shots from that lady over there are freaking everyone out," Lancer Cu said as he was done telling the story.

Shirou was shocked after hearing Lancer Cu's story. "Seriously? Gilgamesh was screaming when he was getting the shots?"

"Yeah. And he was screaming loudly. He was even cursing in some language I don't even understand."

"Wow. So, what happened next?"

"Well, after a few minutes of him screaming, he suddenly stopped for some reason. When I peeked at the room to see what happened, I saw Gilgamesh passed out, stripped of his upper body with apparently, a bunch of needles on him."

Shirou's mouth dropped. "You got to be kidding me."

"I wish. Anyways, good luck with your shots. You're definitely going to need it. That woman's shots are really scary..." Cu said as he slapped him on the back before leaving.

Shirou was still stunned with what Cu just said to him. "Really?! Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, passed out from getting shots?! Jeez, to make him pass out...just how scary Nightingale at the medical facility is?!" he thought.

Shirou then continued to head towards the medical facility. While he did, he passed by many servants that knew him, and they were having the same reaction as Lancer Cu.

Fear.

"Wow. Cu wasn't kidding when he said that everyone here fears Nightingale's shots..." Shirou thought as he continued walking.

Eventually, he arrived at the medical facility. As he did, Nightingale noticed him coming into the room.

"Excuse me, may I help you?" she asked.

"Yes. I'm here for the shots," Shirou replied.

"Do you have the questionnaire filled out?"

"Yes," Shirou replied as he handed her his filled-out questionnaire.

Nightingale then looked at the questionnaire. "Hmm...Emiya Shirou. Saber-class servant. Hasn't been sick in the past few days. There's nothing wrong with his body as well..." she thought as she continued to look at the questionnaire.

"Um...can I ask you a question Nightingale?"

"Keep it short. I have a lot of patients after you."

"Well...since we're heroic spirits, are the shots necessary? I mean, it's not like we'll get sick for a moment..." Shirou asked as he sat down on the chair.

However, Nightingale was silent upon hearing Shirou's question. For a moment, Shirou thought he made her mad.

Then she spoke. "Well, the effect might be slight...but this is the only way I can make sure that master is safe by making sure that every servant here is healthy. After all, if any one of you servants get sick or injured beyond repair, master will die, and humanity will fall in the upcoming battles."

_"Nightingale..."_

"That's why...just give me your arm. It's time for your shots," Nightingale said in a scary and menacingly tone of voice as she brought out multiple syringes with her fingers while looking at Shirou with a scary face that looked like a murderer from a scary movie.

Shirou deadpanned upon seeing the number of syringes she just brought out. "Ah," he thought.

It was then that Shirou experienced something even more horrifying than the Great Fuyuki Fire or the Grail War or even anything on his travels.

Shots from Nightingale.


	57. Trauma of Vegetables

Shirou was in Chaldea's cafeteria, preparing himself for the upcoming lunch break that was going to happen soon.

Which meant he had to feed Arturia and her many counterparts in which they would storm into the cafeteria and demand for Shirou's cooking along with Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, and many others.

To be fair, they all loved his cooking, including EMIYA's as well, since EMIYA is an alternate future counterpart of Shirou.

Especially Arturia and her counterparts. They relished it.

As Shirou was preparing the cafeteria for the upcoming storm that was about to come soon, there was a servant that came into the cafeteria. The servant that came into the cafeteria is an androgynous-looking boy who is fancily dressed.

That servant is Astolfo, one of the Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne.

_"Hm...so that's Emiya Shirou huh? From what I heard, he solved Mordred's problem with his father. I wonder if he can solve this problem of Mordred...maybe I should greet him first."_

Astolfo then came up to Emiya Shirou, making his presence known to him.

"Hm? Who are you? Can I help you?" Shirou asked Astolfo as he noticed him.

Astolfo smiled. "Greetings Emiya Shirou! My name is Astolfo, one of the Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne! And I have come to ask you for some help Emiya Shirou!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"Help? What kind of help are you talking about?"

"Well...it has something to do with Mordred..."

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Mordred? Is there something wrong with her? Did she get into a fight with Arturia and her counterparts again?"

"Well, it's not that...but rather, it's a small problem Mordred's been having ever since she arrived here."

"A small problem? What kind of small problem is that?"

"Well..." Astolfo said with a chuckle as he began to retell Shirou an event that happened before he arrived here...

_(A year ago...)_

Astolfo was humming to himself as he sat down next to Mordred in the cafeteria. "So, Mordred, how's life here?" he asked.

"Well, it's not bad at least. Although I still can't believe that my father is here...and she has a bunch of alternate counterparts that I have never heard of," Mordred replied as she took a piece of meat into her mouth.

Astolfo chuckled. "I'm guessing that things are awkward between you two, right?"

"Yeah. You have no idea..."

Astolfo and Mordred then continued eating their meals together. Eventually, they were almost done with their meals. However, there was a small problem that would eventually grow into a huge event that would remind both of them.

"Great. There's Brussel sprouts here...maybe I'll just leave them on the side..." Mordred then moved her Brussel sprouts like how a picky eater would. She then left the table, her plate unfinished as there were bits of Brussel sprouts on the side.

"Ah, Mordred. You didn't finish your plate," Astolfo said as she noticed the remaining Brussel sprouts bits on Mordred's plate.

"Tch. You had to notice huh?" Mordred said.

"Yeah. I've never seen you reject food before. So why did you put aside those Brussel sprouts?"

Mordred let out a small sigh. "I don't want to eat them..." she muttered quietly.

"Hm? What was that Mordred?" Astolfo said.

Mordred sighed again. "I don't want to eat them," she admitted.

"Why? You don't like Brussel sprouts?"

A groan was heard from Mordred. "Y-Yes..."

Astolfo immediately laughed after hearing Mordred's answer. "Wow! I can't believe it! Mordred, the knight of treachery, doesn't like Brussel sprouts! This is crazy!"

Mordred grumbled. "Okay, I don't like Brussel sprouts. So what?"

Astolfo stopped laughing for a moment but was still chucking over what he just found out. "Sorry, but it's surprising to see you hate a food. I mean, I've seen you eat a lot in the past!"

"Yeah, yeah. Anyways, I'm going to leave now. See you," Mordred said as she began to leave the cafeteria but stopped as she heard a voice from the kitchen.

It was Beni-enma, and she wasn't happy.

Astolfo mentally face-palmed herself. "Oh dear. I forgot Beni-enma oversees the kitchen for today. And she doesn't take it that well when there's leftover food on the table..." she thought.

"Mordred...what are you doing..." Beni-enma muttered in a scary tone.

"Huh? I'm just leaving," Mordred replied, not aware of the danger she just put in.

"Oh really? Not without eating your Brussel sprouts?!"

"Why should I? They're just Brussel sprouts," Mordred said as she began to leave the cafeteria. However, that move was the worst move Mordred has made in that situation.

Because at that moment, a knife just flew behind her, and upon instinct, Mordred dodged the knife.

"Hey! What the heck you-" Mordred yelled as she turned around. However, it was then that she realized she made a huge mistake of not eating her Brussel sprouts.

Because when she turned around, she saw Beni-enma in an aura that would make most servants scared, and the face she was giving her was even making her scared as Beni-enma's face looked like a killer's face.

"Oh dear. Mordred just made Beni-enma angry..."

"Uh oh," Mordred thought as she began to run away from Beni-enma.

"GET BACK HERE MORDRED!" Beni-enma yelled as she began to chase Mordred...

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's what happened," Astolfo said as he was done explaining the event to Shirou.

Shirou was surprised by what Astolfo told him. "So, let me get this straight. What happened was that a Mordred has a problem with eating Brussel sprouts, and when she tried to leave without eating them on her plate, Beni-enma got mad and started chasing her around in Chaldea?"

"Yes. That's right."

Shirou sighed. "Jeez Mordred, just why would you make Beni-enma mad on that day? From what I heard from Archer, you don't want to make Beni-enma mad. Especially when it comes to anything related to food..."

"Um Shirou?" Astolfo asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing. Anyways, continue," Shirou replied.

"Oh, yeah. Anyways ever since then, Mordred's had a problem with Brussel sprouts."

"I see. So what do you want me to do?"

"Well...can you help me fix Mordred's picky eater problem?"

"Well...I think I can, but why are you asking me?"

"Well, considering that your Mordred's mom, I think you have the best shot out of everyone here. And plus, I asked other people before, but they wouldn't agree to it. Not only that, but for some reason Mordred keeps avoiding the question."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Astolfo said as he began to recall another event in the past...

_(A year ago...)_

Astolfo was walking in Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business. As he did, he then came across something that he did not expect.

Mordred was hanging in the air in which there was rope tied onto her leg. Along her was Beni-enma and Da Vinci.

And Beni-enma was holding a plate with some Brussel sprouts.

"What the heck is this?!" Astolfo thought as he was dumbfounded by the sight in front of him.

"Hm? Oh, hey there Astolfo," Da Vinci greeted.

"Hey there Da Vinci. Um, if I may want to ask, what is going on here?" Astolfo asked as she was confused with what was going on.

"Oh this? Well, let's just say that Beni-enma here wanted my help to catch Mordred because Mordred didn't want to eat her Brussel sprouts," Da Vinci replied.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"And how long has Mordred been up there?"

"I would say...about two hours at most."

"Ehhh?! Two hours?!"

"Yeah."

"Mordred! Eat your Brussel sprouts!" Beni-enma yelled at Mordred who was dangling in the air by rope.

"Never!" Mordred replied.

Astolfo was in shock at the conversation between Beni-enma and Mordred. "Jeez. Just how much does Mordred hate Brussel sprouts?" she thought.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Really? Beni-enma asked Da Vinci to trap Mordred so she can get her to eat her Brussel sprouts?" Shirou asked as he was dumbfounded by the event that Astolfo told him.

"Yeah," Astolfo replied.

"Wow. I didn't know that Mordred's problem with Brussel sprouts were that big..."

"Me neither. I always thought she could eat anything. Up until now that is."

"Yeah. So you want me to talk to her?"

"Hey, at this point, I'm open for anything that you could do, so yeah. Try to talk to her and see what's wrong with her and Brussel sprouts."

"Will do. Anyways, see you Astolfo."

"Yeah! Bye Emiya Shirou!" Astolfo said with a smile on his face.

And the two parted ways. As they did, Astolfo had one thought that was going in his head.

_"Hope this plan works. If it doesn't, then I give up..."_

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Now, where could Mordred be..." Shirou thought as he was trying to find Mordred and help her get over her problem with Brussel sprouts. As Shirou continued walking in the hallways of Chaldea, he finally found her in the training room in which she was slashing training dummies down easily.

"Take that!" Mordred yelled as she slashed another training dummy down. As she did, she stopped swinging her sword for a moment and turned around to see Shirou. "Oh, hey mother!"

"Hey there Mordred."

"What brings you here mother? A training spar against me?"

"Well no. Rather, I heard from one of your friends that you have a huge problem with Brussel sprouts."

Mordred nearly dropped her sword upon hearing Shirou's question. "Crap. Now he knows?! Who told him?! Wait a minute...Astolfo, you blabbermouth! You had to tell him that, didn't you?!"

"Well?"

Mordred let out a sigh. "Astolfo told you, didn't he?"

"Yes."

Mordred sighed. "Well, it's going to be a long story, so find a place to get comfy."

Shirou followed Mordred's order and found himself a bench to sit on.

"Okay. The reason why I hate Brussel sprouts so much is because of my mother...again," Mordred admitted.

"Morgan again? Just how is she involved in this?"

"Well...it's actually quite simple. She liked Brussel sprouts and would always force me to eat them whenever she had the chance. Not only that, but they also don't taste that great to me."

"I see..."

"Yeah. And ever since then, I had a problem with Brussel sprouts itself. Because of her, the sight of green peppers would always make me sick and I would try to avoid them."

"Is that why you ran out of the cafeteria that one day where it ended in Beni-enma chasing you throughout all of Chaldea?"

"Yeah."

"And that time where you were hanging from the ceiling with a rope Da Vinci made so that Beni-enma can make you eat your Brussel sprouts?"

Mordred blushed. "He told you that as well?"

"Yeah."

Mordred grumbled for a moment as she now knew that Astolfo revealed an event she wanted to forget. "Anyways, that's the reason why I hate Brussel sprouts, mother."

"I see. I didn't know your hatred for Brussel Sprouts were that big..." Shirou said.

"Yeah. Well, everyone has an secret they want to hide..."

"True."

For a moment, Shirou and Mordred remained in silence, wondering how to continue the conversation. After a few minutes of silence, Shirou continued the conversation.

"Hey Mordred, I have an idea how to get you to not hate Brussel sprouts."

Mordred was baffled. "What?"

"Yeah. I have an idea how to get you to not hate Brussel sprouts."

For a moment, Mordred was silent upon hearing Shirou's statement. Then she started laughing.

"Really? You can make me not hate Brussel sprouts?" Mordred said with laughter.

"Yeah. Why?"

"That's the funniest thing I have ever heard of! It even sounds more ridiculous than the dream you used to have! What was it? Oh yeah! The hero of justice dream!" Mordred said as she continued to laugh.

Eventually, she calmed down after minutes of laughing from Shirou's statement.

Shirou sighed. "Listen, do you want you to get over your hate of Brussel sprouts? Or would you rather deal with another event like what happened to you earlier?"

Mordred let out a sigh. "Sure. I'm interested in seeing how you can solve my problem," she said.

Shirou grinned. "Follow me."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Astolfo was walking in Chaldea's hallway, wondering if Shirou managed to fix Mordred's problem. "Hm, I wonder if Shirou managed to fix Mordred's problem with Brussel sprouts..."

As she continued walking, she passed by Chaldea's cafeteria and saw Shirou and Mordred together. It was then that she overheard a conversation between Shirou and Mordred.

"Jeez mother! This is good! And to think you made this out of Brussel sprouts! I don't even taste them at all!" Mordred happily said as she continued eating.

"Well, that's great Mordred, but please don't talk while eating," Shirou replied.

Mordred nodded in response.

Meanwhile, Astolfo watched the scene with a smile on his face.

_"Well then, looks like Shirou managed to solve that problem. Now I'll just leave things to him and be on my way..."_

And that's how Shirou helped Mordred get over her hatred of Brussel sprouts.


	58. Prank

"Bzz! Bzz!"

Shirou moaned as he heard his alarm clock from the nearby stand right next to his bed. He then raised his hand to proceed to turn it off. "Mnnnh...it's already morning?" Shirou thought to himself as he got out of bed. As he did, he then went into the bathroom to refresh himself for the morning.

However, when he was about to do so, he then looked in the mirror, and noticed something completely crucial about himself.

His hair color was in a pure white, just like EMIYA and EMIYA Alter's.

At that moment, Shirou had one thought to himself.

_"What in the root is this?!"_

_(In EMIYA's room...)_

EMIYA woke up and he went to the bathroom to check on himself. As he did, he noticed a certain change that made him shocked upon seeing himself in the mirror.

His hair was red, just like his younger counterpart.

And he did not take it well.

_"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?! HOW DID MY HAIR COLOR TURN RED LIKE MY YOUNGER SELF?!"_

_(In EMIYA's Alter's room...)_

EMIYA Alter let out a small moan as he got out of bed. As he did, he then went into the bathroom to check on himself.

And like his un-altered counterpart, he noticed something different in the mirror.

His hair, despite being shaved, was red, just like his younger counterpart.

_"What the hell is this?! Why is my hair red?!"_

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou let out a moan as he was getting used to the new change that has happened to him this morning. "What in the root is this? Just how did my hair turn white this morning? I'm pretty sure that I did not drink something weird yesterday. Unlike that last time with Merlin..." Shirou thought as he remembered the time where he was turned into a woman because of Merlin.

As Shirou continued walking, he ended up passing by a lot of servants who mistook him as EMIYA.

"Hey? Isn't that the red bowman?" one servant asked.

"No wait, that's Emiya Shirou," another servant said.

"Really? But he looks so different with white hair. In fact, he kind of looks like the red bowman that we would see in the kitchen..."

"To be fair, it was revealed that he and the red bowman were the same person..."

"Oh yeah..."

Shirou let out a small sigh as he heard the comments from the servants he would pass by. "The hair color change seems big to everyone here huh...this is going to be a long day..." he thought.

As Shirou continued walking, it was then he bumped into two certain servants.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter.

And just like him, they had their hairstyles altered too.

Upon seeing their younger self, both EMIYA and EMIYA Alter let out a small sigh as they now knew that along with them, he had his hair color changed.

For a moment, they were silent upon meeting each other. Then EMIYA decided to speak out.

"So, the change happened to you too?" EMIYA asked Shirou.

"Yeah. The same happened to you too?" Shirou replied.

"Yup. We woke up looking like this earlier," EMIYA Alter said as he pointed his shaved hair.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Is Merlin involved in this again?"

"Honestly, I'm surprised if he wasn't even involved in this at all. You know how much he likes to play pranks on everyone here," EMIYA replied.

"No kidding. Remember that time where he turned you into a girl?" EMIYA Alter said as he remembered the first appearance of Shirou as a girl.

"Yeah, I remember. Why are you asking me that though?"

"Well...after what happened to you, Merlin turned us into girls as well," EMIYA said.

Shirou nearly dropped his mouth upon hearing EMIYA's statement. "No way."

"Yeah."

"And when did that happen?"

"A few days after you were turned into a girl," EMIYA Alter replied.

"But wait, if that's the case, then how come is it that when I saw both of you, you two were still normal?"

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Because unlike you, we managed to figure out who turned us into girls immediately and sought him out."

"And then you two threatened him to give you the potion?"

"Exactly," EMIYA and EMIYA Alter replied in unison.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Sometimes I will never understand what goes on in Merlin's head..." he muttered.

"Me neither," EMIYA said.

"Well then, here remains the big question. What do we do now?" EMIYA Alter asked.

For a moment, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were quiet as they were thinking what their next move should be to fix their problems.

However, as they were thinking, they realized something.

It was almost breakfast, and they were not in the cafeteria.

Which would result in Arturia and her counterparts getting hungry immediately.

At that moment, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter had one thought in mind.

_"Hunger is the enemy."_

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were walking towards the cafeteria together. As they were walking towards the cafeteria, Shirou let out a sigh.

"Hm? Something wrong?" EMIYA asked.

"Honestly, I'm not sure on how to explain the situation here. I mean, with my hair being dyed to white while both of you had your hair dyed to red," Shirou said.

EMIYA Alter sighed as well. "Well, we'll just have to explain the situation when we arrive there."

"You got a point there..."

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter continued walking towards the cafeteria. Eventually, they arrived there.

And as they did, they saw Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Sakura, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, and Jaguar-man looking at them with a gaze.

"Shirou..."

"Emiya-kun..."

"Senpai..."

"Onii-chan..."

"Sherou..."

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter let out a small sigh and continued walking towards the cafeteria. As they got there, everyone's gazes were focused on them as they arrived in the kitchen.

For a moment, there was silence in the cafeteria. Then Arturia decided to speak out.

"Shirou...your hair..."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Yes. It's been dyed. The same can be said about my counterparts as well."

"But how though? What happened to it?" Ishtar asked.

"Well, that's the thing. We don't know. All we know was that when we woke up, our hair was already dyed like this," EMIYA replied.

"Is that so?" Parvati asked.

"Yeah," EMIYA Alter said as he began to head back to his work along with Shirou and EMIYA. As they did, everyone in the cafeteria continued looking at Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter working in the kitchen.

"Wow. Shirou with white hair..." Arturia said.

"Hm...it does look good on him..." Arturia Alter said.

"This is a first..." Arturia Lily said.

"Yeah. He kind of looks like Archer and his counterpart over there," Lancer Arturia said.

"To be fair, they are the same person, although from different timelines," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Exactly. Still though, the thought of Shirou having white hair..." Ruler Arturia said.

"I know. Quite bizarre. Especially since Archer and his counterpart now have red hair," Archer Arturia said.

"I agree. We're used to seeing Shirou in his usual hair color and vice versa. So this is a new thing," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"Indeed. I have a feeling this is Merlin's work," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Not again...another of that guy's pranks?" Mysterious Heroine X said.

"I swear, after we're done eating, we're finding him immediately," Mysterious Heroine X Alter said.

"Agree," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

"Huh. So, this is what Emiya-kun looks like with white hair..." Ishtar said.

"Yeah. He looks like Archer in a weird way," Ereshkigal said.

"I agree. But he doesn't have the cynicism of Archer though..." Rider Ishtar said.

"Sempai with white hair and Archer with red hair..." Parvati said.

"I'll admit, the hair color does look good on him," Kama said.

"Agreed. A white-haired sempai is something I could get used to," BB said.

"He does look cool," Passionlip said.

"Indeed. White hair seems to be a good combination with him. However, red hair on Archer though...feels weird. Especially on the alter..." Meltlilith said.

"Hm...the hair does match his name now," Kingprotea said.

"Wow. Onii-chan with white hair feels so weird..." Illya said.

"You think so? I think it looks great on him!" Kuro said excitedly.

"Yeah! White hair on onii-chan seems to work on him!" Sitonai replied in the same tone of voice Kuro had.

"Still though, I prefer red as his hair color..." Miyu said.

"I agree with Miyu! I prefer Sherou's natural red hair color!" Astraea said.

"Oh my...all three of my sons had their hair dyed..." Irisviel said.

Kiritsugu didn't say anything.

And surprisingly, Jaguar-man didn't say anything either...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time has passed since Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter had their hair dyed together out of nowhere. Right now, Shirou. EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were asking other servants to see if anyone saw them go into their rooms last night.

Sadly, they didn't get any results as everyone in Chaldea didn't see anyone going into their rooms at the same time.

Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter soon met up in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms. "So, any of you found the culprit?" EMIYA asked.

"Nope," Shirou replied.

"Me neither," EMIYA Alter replied.

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Well, this is getting nowhere. After many hours of finding who the culprit is, we don't even have a lead on whoever it is."

"I agree. Even after meeting everyone here including master, I still don't know who did this to us," Shirou said.

"Yeah. I even asked Merlin earlier, and surprisingly, he wasn't responsible for this," EMIYA Alter said.

Shirou and EMIYA were shocked upon hearing what EMIYA Alter said. "You're kidding me," EMIYA said.

"I wish."

Both Shirou and EMIYA thought about what EMIYA Alter said earlier. "If Merlin isn't the one who pulled this prank on us, then who did...?"

After minutes of thinking about who was the one who pranked them, they eventually gave up as they couldn't figure out an answer to their problem.

"Well? Should we figure this problem out later?" Shirou asked.

EMIYA sighed. "I agree."

"Same," EMIYA Alter said.

And then Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter soon left the room. As they did, their changed hair color had some reactions from the servants that knew them, especially Shirou.

In Cu and his counterparts' case, they were shocked with the hair color change.

In Medusa and her counterparts' case, they were also shocked with the hair color change.

In Caster Medea's case, she was confused with the hair color change.

In Sasaki's case, he didn't care about the hair color change.

In Heracles' case, he just roared.

In Archer Gilgamesh's case, he had a face of shock while his Caster and Kid counterparts were confused with his reaction.

In Nero and her counterparts' reaction, they were surprised with the dyed hair.

In Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts' reaction, Jeanne D'Arc Alter and her Santa Lily counterpart were in awe of the white hair on Shirou while Jeanne D'Arc just smiled at the two.

In Okita and her counterpart's case, Okita Alter asked if Shirou became a counter guardian while Okita just sighed with EMIYA and EMIYA Alter following her.

In Musashi's case, she was surprised with the hair color change.

In the Knights of the Round's case, they were surprised with the hair color change, and they were even more surprised that Merlin was not responsible for this change.

In Nursery's, Jack's, Abigail's, and Paul's case, they were surprised with the hair color change.

In Arthur's case, he was surprised with the hair color change, and was even more surprised that Merlin was not responsible for the change.

In Amakusa Shirou's case, he was surprised.

In Scathach and her counterpart's case, they didn't care.

In Hakuno's case, she made a comment about Shirou saying he looked like Nameless when he was younger.

In Waver's case, he didn't care.

As they continued walking in the hallway, Shirou didn't look where he was going and accidentally bumped into Jaguar-man.

"Ow!"

"Ow!"

Both servants fell to the ground after bumping into each other. As they were nursing the head injury they received, they looked at each other.

"Well, that smarts...hey there Shirou..." Jaguar-man said.

"Fuji-nee..." Shirou said before he noticed something.

Right next to her was a few cans.

"Wait. Those cans...don't tell me..." they thought in unison as Shirou quickly grabbed the cans before Jaguar-man could.

"Oh no! The cans!" Jaguar-man thought in horror.

As Shirou inspected the can, he realized what the cans were.

They were cans of dye. One was in red and the other was in white.

For a moment, there was silence between the servants. Then Shirou looked at Jaguar-man with an annoyed face. "Fuji-nee..." he muttered.

"Ehehehe...Shirou...sorry!" Jaguar-man muttered as she slowly walked backwards...before running away immediately.

"Fuji-nee! Get back here!" Shirou yelled as he began to run after her while EMIYA and EMIYA Alter stayed behind.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter let out a sigh as they now knew who dyed their hair.

"I should have known. It was her out of all people...why though?" they thought in unison.

And just like that, Shirou was chasing Jaguar-man all throughout in Chaldea...


	59. Hunt for the Spear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those that are wondering when's the Proto-Merlin chapter, that's coming up next :) Also, this was based of a FGO 4Koma.

"Hey! Get back here! And that's my spear!"

"Nope! Not on my watch! And plus, you're me, so technically, it's already mine!"

"Not in this case Caster! Give it back!"

"Never!"

Right now, Lancer Cu was chasing his Caster counterpart throughout all of Chaldea.

And why?

Simple. Caster Cu was holding Gae Bolg in his hands, and he didn't want to part away from it.

And it all started because of Cu's napping...

_(A few hours ago...)_

Lancer Cu was sleeping on the couch in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms, with his spear in the corner of the couch. As he was sleeping, a servant happened to pass by.

That servant was Boudica, the Queen of Victory.

Right now, Boudica was carrying a basket of laundry after she came out of the laundry room. However, she was having a problem as the usual dryer in the laundry room was broken. "Hm, what should I do? There's this many dirty clothes that needed to by dry, but the dryer now is broken for some reason...what should I do?" she thought.

It was then that she came across Cu sleeping and then saw Gae Bolg in the corner.

_"Hm...I could use that as a drying rack...I hope that Cu doesn't mind if I borrow it for a moment. I'll give it back to him later when I see him..."_

And then she carefully grabbed Gae Bolg from the corner and quickly left the room.

After a few minutes of sleeping, Lancer Cu woke up from his nap with a yawn. "Man. That was a good nap..."

However, when he woke up, he noticed that Gae Bolg was missing, and he was freaking out a little bit. "Hm? Where's Gae Bolg? Who took my spear?! Where is it?! Great, if shishou or her counterpart or both of them find out that I lost Gae Bolg, they'll have my head on a silver platter...I need to find it now!" he thought.

And in an instant, Lancer Cu quickly got off the couch he was sleeping on and headed out in the hallways of Chaldea. As he was searching for Gae Bolg, he asked numerous servants to see if any of them saw his spear.

And sadly, none of them saw it.

"Tch, this is getting nowhere..." he thought as he continued walking. As he continued walking, he bumped into a certain servant.

EMIYA.

"Oh. Hey there lancer," EMIYA said.

Lancer Cu sighed. "Hey, Archer! Have you seen my spear?"

For a moment, EMIYA was silent upon hearing Lancer Cu's question. Then he turned his head slowly and said, "I...haven't..."

At that moment, Lancer Cu knew he was lying and grabbed him by the shoulder. "Liar! Such a blunt reply...you know something, don't you!? Say it!"

EMIYA sighed as he now knew that Lancer Cu was not going to take any bullshit from him.

"All right, fine. I did see your spear."

"Where is it?!"

"Well...it seems that when you were sleeping at one the recreational rooms, Boudica came by while carrying the laundry. Apparently, what happened was that earlier, the dryer in Chaldea's laundry room was broken. Boudica was troubled by it and so...she happened to look upon your spear..."

For a moment, EMIYA was silent before Lancer Cu yelled at him.

"What?! What happened next?" Lancer Cu asked.

EMIYA took a deep breath before continuing. "She used your spear as a drying rack..."

Lancer Cu was shocked and deadpanned upon hearing what EMIYA just said. "What?"

"Yeah. She used your spear as a drying rack," EMIYA repeated.

Lancer Cu was silent for a moment before yelling, "Well why didn't you stop her?!"

"Well, it looks interesting at the time, so I just watched and let her do her business!" EMIYA replied in defiance.

"You bastard!" Lancer yelled as he now knew that his spear was being used as a drying rack. After a few seconds of calming down from his outrage, he continued the conversation. "And? Where's missy Boudica?!"

"Hm...she's probably still in the laundry room by now," EMIYA replied.

"I see. Thanks then. I'll still remember this Archer..." Lancer Cu muttered as he headed towards to the laundry room where he should find Gae Bolg along with Boudica. As he was walking towards the laundry room, he had a few thoughts going through his mind. "I swear, why does missy Boudica think she can use my spear as a drying rack?! I mean seriously! That spear is a gift from shishou you know! It's not supposed to be used for something that mundane!"

Eventually, Lancer Cu was getting close to the laundry room, hoping to see both Boudica and his spear. "Hey! Missy! Sorry, but can you return my spear..." he asked as he arrived in the room.

However, when he arrived in the room, what he saw was Boudica...and apparently, Caster's Cu staff instead. Lancer Cu was surprised at what he was seeing. "Huh?!"

"Hm? Oh, hello Cu Chulainn...?" Boudica said.

For a moment, Lancer Cu was speechless at the sight in front of him. Then after a few moments of silence, he began to speak.

"Um...missy, where is my spear? From what Archer told me, you used it as a drying rack, correct?"

"Yeah...sorry for not asking you earlier..." Boudica sheepishly replied with a chuckle.

Lancer Cu sighed. "Where is my spear?" he repeated.

"Oh, your spear? Well...the thing is that I was using it earlier until the Caster version of you came by and took it...and in exchange, he lent me his staff..."

At that moment, Lancer Cu felt burning rage at his Caster counterpart for taking his spear. Not to mention the fact that he also imagined what face his Caster counterpart was making right now upon having Gae Bolg.

_"THAT BASTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARD!"_

And in an instant, Lancer Cu immediately left the laundry room and started running around in Chaldea's hallways to find his Caster counterpart. "I SWEAR, WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON MY CASTER COUNTERPART, I'M GOING TO KICK HIS ASS!" he thought.

Eventually, after many minutes of running around in Chaldea's hallways, Lancer Cu eventually found Caster Cu in the hallway, who was admiring Gae Bolg.

"HEY! CASTER ME!" Lancer Cu yelled.

Caster Cu stopped looking at Gae Bolg for a moment and turned around to see an angry Lancer Cu in front of him. "Uh oh..."

"GIVE ME BACK MY SPEAR!"

"NEVER! IT'S MINE NOW!"

And thus, the chase between Lancer Cu and Caster Cu began...

_(Back to the present...)_

"Well, this is not how I want to spend today! Instead of enjoying myself while taking a nap, I'm spending today chasing after my Caster counterpart for my spear! I mean come on! He just can't take my spear and call it his! Even though he may be me, it's not his weapon!" Lancer Cu thought as he was chasing his Caster counterpart.

"Finally! After many years, Gae Bolg is mine! I can finally use it again! Sure, this may be my Lancer counterpart's weapon, but he is me. Therefore, it also belongs to me as well!" Caster Cu thought.

As Lancer Cu continued chasing after Caster Cu, it was then that they passed by two certain people.

Ritsuka and Mashu.

"Hey Mashu...was that Cu chasing after his counterpart?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah...and it seems that the Caster version of him was carrying his spear senpai..." Mashu replied.

Ritsuka sighed. "I've got a bad feeling about this..."

"Me too senpai. The destruction those two will cause...we're going to stop them now."

"Agreed."

And soon, Ritsuka and Mashu soon followed the trail of the fighting...

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Right now, Lancer Cu was still chasing his Caster counterpart throughout the hallways of Chaldea.

"Jeez! I know he's the Lancer counterpart of me, but how much stamina does he have to keep running like this?!" Caster Cu thought as he continued being chased by his Lancer Counterpart.

"Come on...almost there..." Lancer Cu thought as he was getting closer to his Caster counterpart. As he got closer to him, he instantly jumped onto him. "Gotcha!" he yelled as he landed himself onto Caster Cu.

"Hey! Get off me!"

"Not until you give me back my spear!"

"Never!"

And then a fight broke out between Lancer Cu and Caster Cu. For a while, both of them were punching and kicking each other while they were rolling around on the ground throughout in Chaldea. As they were fighting, some of the servants looked at the fight.

And to some of them, it looked like a fight from a cartoon, minus the special effects, sounds, and the dust cloud.

"Ow! Take this!" Lancer Cu said as he punched Caster Cu in the face.

"Oh yeah?! Well, take that!" Caster Cu replied as he kicked Lancer Cu in the stomach.

Soon, Ritsuka and Mashu found where Lancer Cu and Caster Cu were fighting against each other, and they were still fighting each other. Ritsuka then yelled to stop the fighting. "YOU TWO, STOP FIGHTING!"

Upon hearing Ritsuka's yelling, Lancer Cu and Caster Cu immediately stopped fighting each other. As they let go of each other, they greeted Ritsuka.

"Hey there kid..." they said in unison.

Ritsuka took a deep breath. "Lancer Cu, Caster Cu, why were you to fighting against each other?" he asked with a bit of scolding in his tone of voice.

Lancer Cu then pointed at his Caster counterpart. "It's because he took my spear!" he yelled.

"Is that true Caster Cu?" Mashu asked.

"Yes..." Caster Cu replied.

"Why though?"

"Well...I just want to use Gae Bolg one more time."

Ritsuka and Mashu deadpanned upon hearing Caster Cu's answer. "So, let me get this straight. The reason why the fight between you two started was because you wanted to use Gae Bolg?"

"Yes."

"And how did you acquire it in the first place?"

Caster Cu let out a sigh. "I got it from missy Boudica in which she was using it as a drying rack because the dryer in Chaldea's laundry room is broke, and in exchange for getting Gae Bolg, I let her borrow my staff. How she got it was that she borrowed it when my Lancer counterpart was asleep."

Ritsuka and Mashu were surprised at how the whole thing started. "Is that so?" Ritsuka said.

"Yeah."

"Great. Now if you will excuse me," Lancer Cu said as he took Gae Bolg back from his Caster counterpart.

"Hey! That's my spear!" Caster Cu yelled.

"Not anymore!"

"Why you...!"

And Lancer Cu and Caster Cu were growling at each other.

For a moment, Ritsuka was examining the issue that was in front of him. "Hm...so this whole thing started because Caster Cu wanted to wield Gae Bolg. Normally I would call that stealing, but...considering that they're the same person although from different classes, it's hard to tell if it's stealing or not. Hm...what to do here?"

It was at that moment that Emiya Shirou came into the scene. "Hm? Master? Mashu? Cu?" Shirou said, snapping Ritsuka out of his thinking.

"Shirou?"

"Shirou-san?"

"Kid?"

"Shirou? What are you doing here?" Ritsuka asked.

"Da Vinci asked me to come to her workshop earlier," Shirou replied.

At that moment, an idea came into Mashu's head. "Shirou-san is here...wait a minute, that's it!"

In an instant, Mashu quickly rushed to Shirou's side, confusing everyone for a moment.

"Mashu?"

"Shirou-san, I need to borrow you for a few seconds. Do you mind?"

"No."

"Great! Follow me for a moment," Mashu said as she gently dragged Shirou to a corner of the hallway. As they were far away from Ritsuka, Lancer Cu, and Caster Cu, Mashu then whispered something to Shirou.

Meanwhile, Ritsuka, Lancer Cu, and Caster Cu were wondering what just happened to Mashu and Shirou. "What the heck just happened?" Ritsuka asked.

"I don't know," Lancer Cu replied.

"Me neither," Caster Cu said.

After a few seconds, Shirou and Mashu returned. "Everyone, I think I may have a solution to both of your problems here," Mashu said with a smile on her face.

"Really? What is it?" Lancer Cu asked.

"Shirou-san, if you would please."

Shirou then stepped forward. He then brought out his arm and said, "Trace on."

In an instant, a copy of Gae Bolg appeared in his hands. "Will this do?" he asked.

For a moment, everyone besides Mashu was speechless at what Shirou just did. Then after a few minutes of silence, Lancer and Caster Cu started laughing.

"Of course! If I ever wanted Gae Bolg, I could have asked the kid to make a copy of one! How did I forget?! Heck, this isn't the first time he's done this!" Caster Cu said as he was laughing.

"Wow! I can't believe I forgot about the kid's magecraft abilities! Jeez, if I have realized this earlier, things would have ended differently..." Lancer Cu said with laughter in his voice.

Ritsuka let out a sigh as the problem was hopefully fixed. "Anyways, will this do?"

"Yeah, sure. Give me the one the kid traced."

"Got it. Shirou?"

Shirou then handed Caster Cu the traced Gae Bolg, in which Caster Cu accepted gleefully. "Great! Now I can work on my spear skills! Thanks kid!" Caster Cu said as he soon left.

"Well, at least this is over. Now it's back to napping. Thanks kid," Lancer Cu said as he left the hallway.

Ritsuka and Mashu let out a sigh. "Well, at least things didn't go wrong huh, senpai?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah Mashu," Ritsuka replied.

Meanwhile, Shirou was confused with what just happened. "So...what did I miss?"

Ritsuka and Mashu sighed. "It's a long story..." Ritsuka said.


	60. Not Another Merlin!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Here's the Proto Merlin chapter! Hope everyone enjoys it!

Ritsuka sighed as he was in the summoning room, preparing himself for his usual summoning. "Man. How many times I've been in this room already? I swear, it's like the summoning room here in Chaldea is like a personal room for me in which most of the time, I come in here to summon a servant. And I would either get a servant or a craft essence..." he thought.

Ritsuka then placed the saint quartz onto the summoning alter. As he did, he then moved back from the alter and allowed it to do its magic. In an instant, the alter lit up, temporarily blinding him from how bright the light was. The saint quartz then disappeared, then formed into multiple blue orbs. Then the blue orbs started to connect with each other and turned into a ring of blue sparks swirling around. Then the ring split into three and continued to swirl around.

As the light faded, it revealed a gold card showing a robed old man wearing a hood with a long beard holding a staff while carrying a book at the same time. The card then disappeared as a woman appeared.

However, as the light faded and revealed who the woman was, Ritsuka was surprised at the woman's looks.

Because the woman looked like Merlin with a few alterations. Not only that, but the robes she was wearing were similar to the robes Merlin wears. The only thing that was different between the two was the staff that she was holding in which the design was completely different and was in white.

"Greetings, Master of Chaldea. I am Merlin. People call me the Mage of Flowers. Just call me Merlin. I don't care for formalities," Proto Merlin said with a smile on her face.

Ritsuka was speechless upon hearing Proto Merlin's voice. "T-This servant is Merlin? B-But we already have Merlin here...wait, she must be the Merlin from Arthur's world. Wow, this is something you don't see every day. Not to mention the fact that she sounds like Arturia and her many counterparts, which is also weird because both Arthur and the male Merlin sound the same. Hope that she's different from her male counterpart. Still though...she's beautiful..." he thought.

"Master? Are you all right?" Proto Merlin asked, snapping Ritsuka out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing. Anyways, welcome to Chaldea...Merlin. My name is Fujimaru Ritsuka..." Ritsuka said awkwardly.

Proto Merlin let out a giggle upon seeing Ritsuka's reaction. "Now, now, no need to get all hot and bothered. Just as you see, I am a beautiful older sister who smiles off as watching on your journey! You may call me Merlin onee-san if you wish!"

Ritsuka nearly sweat-dropped upon hearing female Merlin's words. "Okay. Never mind what I thought earlier. She's definitely like her male counterpart, or maybe even worse..."

Ritsuka then cleared his thoughts. "Anyways, would like a tour of Chaldea?"

"Yes master. I would like a tour of Chaldea here. After all, this is the place where I'm going to live here," Proto Merlin said with a smile.

"Great. Let's go then."

Soon, Ritsuka gave Proto Merlin a tour of Chaldea. As he gave the tour for Proto Merlin, there were some effects he did not expect. For example, some of the male staff in Chaldea were staring at Proto Merlin in wonder while the female staff looked at her in jealously.

Ritsuka sighed at the effects. "This is going to be a long day..."

As they continued walking, it was then that a certain servant passed by.

That servant was Arthur Pendragon.

Upon seeing his version of Merlin in front of him, Arthur dropped his mouth in shock. "M-Merlin?!"

Proto Merlin let out a huge smile upon seeing Arthur in front of her. In an instant, she jumped towards him and gave him a giant hug. "Arthur!"

At that moment, both servants fell to the ground upon female Merlin's hug. "M-Merlin, what are you doing here?! And how did you get here?!"

"Well, this young man over there summoned me here. Isn't that obvious? Anyways, onee-san is here! Are you making any friends here in Chaldea? Or do I need to take care of you just like in the old days?" Proto Merlin asked in a teasing tone.

Arthur blushed at what Proto Merlin just said. "Please don't..." he muttered in embarrassment as he tried to get off from her. Eventually, Arthur finally got his version of Merlin off from him, making female Merlin pout.

"Tch. You don't have to do that..." Proto Merlin said with a pout.

Arthur sighed. "Merlin-"

Proto Merlin then tugged on Arthur's ear. "It's Merlin onee-san! Got it!" she said.

Arthur sighed again. "Merlin onee-san, do you mind if I talk to master now?

Proto Merlin let out a smile. "Sure!"

"Thank you." Arthur then went over to Ritsuka who was watching the entire event.

"Arthur...are you okay?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah. I'll be fine. Anyways, master, be careful of her."

"Why?"

"Because, for all of her charm, she is unempathetic trickster and a lustful seductress that feeds on dreams."

"So...she's still Merlin then, just like Arturia and her counterparts' version of Merlin."

"Exactly. For now, I'd suggest keeping an eye on her." Arthur said.

"Got it."

It was then that Proto Merlin suddenly barged into the conversation. "Excuse me master, but shall we continue the tour here? Onee-san here is getting impatient," she said with a pout on her face.

"Y-Yeah..you're right about that Merlin. Let us move on then," Ritsuka replied nervously. "Arthur, do you want to join us?"

"Sure. I don't mind," Arthur replied. "And plus, someone needs to keep an eye on her. Who knows what chaos she will cause if master lets her loose..."

"Great! Let's go then!" female Merlin said joyfully.

And then Ritsuka, Arthur, and Proto Merlin soon continued their tour of Chaldea. As they did, Arthur was keeping his eye on Proto Merlin, which made Ritsuka surprised at how much attention Arthur was giving to Proto Merlin.

_"Wow. I never seen Arthur so focused on something outside of battle. Is his version of Merlin really that troublesome? If so, then I hope both his Merlin and Arturia's Merlin never meet. Who knows what would happen if both meet each other..."_

However, fate seems to have an answer to Ritsuka's question.

Because as soon as that thought came into his head, the group of three bumped into two certain servants.

Saber Arturia and Merlin.

Ritsuka mentally groaned and face palmed himself at what just happened. "Oh, come on! As soon as I thought about what would happen if both Merlins meet, this happens! What the heck man! Is fate toying with me or what?!" he thought.

The sight of Proto Merlin shocked Arturia while Merlin was amused and interested with his gender bent counterpart in front of him.

"A-Arthur...is-is that?"

Arthur sighed. "Yes. The woman that is next to me is my world's version of Merlin."

Arturia's jaw dropped upon hearing Arthur's statement. "No way..."

"Oh my. So, that's Arthur's version of me huh? Wow, this is interesting. Especially since his version of me seems to be a woman. Quite funny I'll admit since what I am looking right now is practically a gender bent version of me and young Arturia," Merlin thought with amusement.

Meanwhile, Proto Merlin was interested in both Arturia and Merlin while Arthur sighed at the situation in front of him.

"Oh dear. This can't be good..." Arthur thought.

"Oh my. There are two people in front of me that resemble both me and Arthur-kun. I wonder who are they? Considering what Arthur-kun said earlier, the man next to the girl might be my counterpart while the girl might be another version of Arthur. Speaking of which, she has the same voice as me," Proto Merlin thought with interest.

"Um...Arturia? Are you okay?" Ritsuka asked.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I'm just...in shock over this," Arturia replied.

"I can't blame you..."

"So, I take it that your Arthur's version of Merlin, correct?" Merlin asked Proto Merlin.

"Indeed, and I suppose that you're also Merlin too, correct?" Proto Merlin replied.

"Indeed. It's a pleasure to meet you Merlin," Merlin said as he brought out his hand.

"Likewise," Proto Merlin replied as she shook his hand. "And I suppose the girl next to you is your world's version of Arthur, correct?"

"Yes. Arturia?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. This may sound weird, but it's nice to meet you Merlin. My name is Arturia Pendragon," Arturia said as she greeted Proto Merlin.

"I see...nice to meet you Arturia. My name is Merlin, but you can call me Merlin onee-san," Proto Merlin said with a smile as she brought out her hand for a handshake.

"Y-Yeah. Nice to meet you too," Arturia replied as she responded to the handshake as well. "Yup, she's definitely Merlin," she thought.

After the handshake was done, Proto Merlin suddenly had an idea come into mind. "Hey master, is it possible for my male counterpart to give me a tour of Chaldea?"

Ritsuka was shocked. "Eh? Why?"

"Oh, let's just say...I have a good feeling he's going to give me a better tour, no offense."

"Hm..well-" Ritsuka tried to say but was interrupted by Merlin.

"I think that's a great idea!" Merlin interrupted with an excited tone of voice. "Well then again, great minds think alike!"

"But-" Ritsuka said but was interrupted again.

"I agree with you!"

Ritsuka sighed as both Merlins were on point at something, knowing that there was no way to change their minds. He then turned to Arturia and Arthur. "Help me."

Arturia and Arthur nodded. "Don't worry. We'll keep an eye on them."

"Thank you..."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go then!"

And Arturia, Arthur, Merlin, and Proto Merlin started walking, leaving Ritsuka behind. As they were walking away, Ritsuka had one thought on his mind.

"Great, there's two of them now. I hope things don't go out of control..."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Right now, Merlin and Proto Merlin were having the time of their lives as they were chatting about their lives, including their times when they were teaching Arturia/Arthur, much to both Arturia and Arthur's dismay and embarrassment.

"So, there was this time where I saw Arturia clean the pig sty, and you want to know what happened next?" Merlin asked.

"What? What happened next?" Proto Merlin asked with curiosity and a bit of excitement in her tone of voice.

Merlin smirked. "Well, let's just say that Arturia started a fight with the pigs, and it lasted quite a while. From what Kay told me, she spent a few days smelling like the pig stys."

Proto Merlin chuckled. "Well, that sounds like an ordeal to her!"

"Yup! And I suppose you have any stories about Arthur as well?"

"Oh, you have no idea! Let me tell you..."

Meanwhile, Arturia and Arthur were embarrassed from the stories both Merlins were talking about.

"Somebody please stop them. This is embarassing..." Arturia and Arthur thought.

However, their conversation about Arturia and Arthur would come to an end as it was then that they encountered a certain group of servants.

The Knights of the Round.

"Eh? My king? Merlin?" Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth asked.

"Father? Merlin?" Mordred asked.

"Hm? Oh, hey everyone!" Merlin cheerfully said.

"My king, who is that person over there? And why does she look like Merlin?" Gawain asked.

"Well...this person is Merlin from my world," Arthur replied.

The Knights of the Rounds dropped their mouths upon hearing what Arthur just said. "You're kidding me..." they muttered.

"Yeah! Anyways, Merlin onee-san is here! Nice to meet all of you!" Proto Merlin said.

"Y-Yeah. Nice to meet you too," Lancelot replied.

"Wow though. I never knew that our king's male counterpart's Merlin was a woman...how intriguing," Tristan said.

"Yeah. And her voice sounds exactly like father...it's so crazy," Mordred said.

"Hm? Father? Are you Mordred by any chance?" Proto Merlin asked as she turned her attention to Mordred.

"Y-Yeah. So what?"

Proto Merlin giggled. "Oh nothing. I was just wondering since Arthur has a female counterpart, there should be a female Mordred too."

"Figures..."

"Honestly, I thought you were Merlin's long-lost sister for a moment," Gareth said.

"Indeed. With those looks, I thought of that too," Bedivere said.

"I know right? For a moment, I thought I had a long-lost sister because of the amount of beauty she was radiating from herself. After all, she looks nearly exactly like me!" Merlin said with laughter.

"Exactly! I thought of the same thing too when I saw my male counterpart for the first time as well!" Proto Merlin said with laughter.

As Merlin and Proto Merlin were laughing with each other, Arturia, Arthur, and the Knights of the Round had one thought in mind.

"Great. There's two of them now...I've got a bad feeling about this..."

However, it was at that moment that another servant came into the hallway, and Arturia, Arthur, the Knights of the Round, and Merlin knew him dearly.

Emiya Shirou.

"Eh? Arturia? Arthur? Mordred? Merlin? Everyone?" Shirou said.

"Ah! Shirou!" Arturia said in a happy tone of voice.

"Hey there Shirou," Arthur and Merlin said.

"My queen!" Gawain, Lancelot, Bedivere, Tristan, and Gareth said.

"Mother!" Mordred said.

At that moment, Proto Merlin was interested with the amount of attention Shirou was receiving from Arturia, Arthur, the Knights of the Round, and Merlin. Especially at the part with Mordred calling Shirou "mother" while the rest of the knights calling him "my queen."

"Oh my. It seems everyone here knows that person who goes by Shirou, but how though? Not only that, but Mordred called him mother while the rest of the Knights of the round called him my queen...this person seems interesting!"

Meanwhile, upon seeing Proto Merlin, a few thoughts came to Shirou's head.

_"What the heck?! Is that a female Merlin over there?! Wait...that must be Arthur's version of Merlin he talked about before...jeez, the similarities between both Merlins nearly look the same. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if some people may think she's Merlin's long-lost sister or something..."_

"Shirou? Are you okay?" Arturia asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Y-Yeah. I'm a bit shocked at seeing her..." Shirou said as he pointed at Proto Merlin.

Arturia sighed. "I can't blame you..."

Proto Merlin then went in front of Shirou. "Hello, my name is Merlin, but you may call me Merlin onee-san. Who are you?"

"A-Ah. My name is Emiya Shirou. It's a pleasure to meet you Merlin," Shirou replied.

Proto Merlin smiled. "Nice to meet you Emiya Shirou."

For a moment, Shirou was shocked with Proto Merlin's voice. "Okay, I know Arthur told me that his Merlin sounds like Arturia, but even hearing it, I still can't believe it! Not to mention the fact that Arthur sounds like Merlin as well! This feels weird..."

"So, what is your relationship to everyone here? Especially after what the Knights of the round called you earlier," Proto Merlin asked.

"Well-" Shirou tried to say, but he was cut off from Merlin.

"Well, young Emiya Shirou here happens to be Arturia's former master from his Holy Grail War, the bearer of Avalon, her lover, and finally, her queen, along with being the mother of Mordred as well," Merlin said with a smug look on his face, making Shirou embarrassed.

"Merlin..." Shirou muttered.

Proto Merlin was immediately excited upon hearing Merlin's words. "Is that so?! Are you friends with Arthur then?!"

"Well...yeah..."

Proto Merlin then turned to Arthur. "Is that true?"

"Y-Yeah..." Arthur replied nervously, knowing what was going to happen next.

"Wah! You have some friends here Arthur! And all this time I thought you would be all alone without onee-san here!" she exclaimed with fake tears coming out of her eyes.

Arthur sighed at Proto Merlin's overdramatic act. "Merlin..."

Merlin chucked at her female counterpart's actions. "Don't worry, your Arthur made some friends here. I guarantee it. Anyways, welcome to Chaldea, where all the fun and entertainment you ever wanted resides here," he said with a smile on his face.

Proto Merlin let out a smile. "That's exactly what I was hoping for."

"Good."

Shirou, Arturia, Arthur, and the Knights of the Round let out a sigh of relief as they were glad that both of them didn't cause any trouble in Chaldea upon meeting each other.

Or so as they thought...

"Hey me, can I ask you a question?" Proto Merlin asked her counterpart.

"Sure. What is it?" Merlin replied.

"You said that Emiya Shirou is Arturia's lover and queen, right? Does that mean they already have sex then?"

At that moment, everyone blushed furiously at Proto Merlin's question. Especially Shirou and Arturia.

However, Merlin let out a playful smirk.

"Oh yes. I watched it all from my tower when they did XXX and XXX," Merlin replied.

Everyone mentally groaned at Merlin's words. However, in Shirou and Arturia's case, they were having a different reaction.

They wanted to kill him so badly.

"Hm...I never thought that Shirou can be that good when doing XXX. Oh, right! Did you know that Arturia's weak spot is located in-" Merlin said but was interrupted as he felt two swords touching him.

And he knew whose swords are those.

"Meeeerliiiiinnnnn..." Shirou and Arturia muttered in anger.

Knowing the danger in front of him, Merlin let out a small smile. "Well, looks like I got to go! Bye!"

And then he left quickly.

"MERLIN! GET BACK HERE!" Shirou and Arturia yelled as they began to chase him.

Meanwhile, Arthur, Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth let out a sigh of disappointment while Mordred was on the ground on all fours, smashing the ground with her fist.

"Father...mother..." Mordred muttered.

"Damn it Merlin..." Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, and Gareth muttered.

Proto Merlin let out a chuckle. "Well then, looks like I'll be having fun here for quite a while..." she thought.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

Proto Merlin was walking in the hallways of Chaldea, minding her own business. As she did, she passed by the cafeteria and saw something that surprised her.

Shirou and the many Arturias he was cooking for them.

"Shirou! Food!" Arturia and her counterparts said in unison.

"On it!" Shirou replied.

"Wow. I didn't know that Arturia had this many counterparts, especially since some of them comes in different sizes and costumes...and Shirou's cooking for all of them. Wait, does that mean he's the queen for all of them? Wow, that's new. Still, he must have really good stamina to cook for all of them...speaking of which, I wonder if Arthur has this many counterparts as her..."

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fou was walking in one of the hallways of Chaldea, hoping to find Shirou. Eventually, he found him, walking alongside with Arturia. However, he noticed that someone was following them.

And that someone was Proto Merlin.

Fou slightly growled at Proto Merlin afar and knew what he had to do.

Kick her in the face.

And then he ran towards her at high speeds.

Meanwhile, Proto Merlin was stalking the couple as she was hoping to see any embarrassing moments between Shirou and Arturia. "Fufufufufu, let's see if anything interesting will happen between the two..." she thought as she continued to stalk them afar.

However, before she could go even further, she felt something hit her face before falling to the ground. And she heard a few certain words.

"Die Merlin, fou!"

And then, Fou began to fight against Proto Merlin...


	61. Chatting with the Queen of Victory

"Phew. That's a lot of plates here..." Shirou thought as he placed a wet plate onto the drying rack next to him. As he did, he continued washing the next plate.

Right now, Shirou was cleaning the dishes in the cafeteria after the daily lunch with Arturia and her counterparts was over. And the number of plates that were left behind when lunch was over was a lot.

To be fair, a lot of servants do come into the cafeteria for lunch. Not to mention the fact that Arturia and her counterparts eat a lot.

However, he was not alone in doing the dishes as he has a helper next to him.

Boudica, the Queen of Victory.

"Hey Shirou, are you done with the dishes over there?" Boudica asked.

"Yeah. Here's the next one Boudica," Shirou replied as he gave her a dirty dish for her to clean at her station.

"Great! Thanks, Shirou!" Boudica replied happily.

Right now, Boudica is helping Shirou cleaning the dishes in which Shirou is responsible for washing the dishes while Boudica is responsible for drying them.

And how does Boudica knew about Shirou? Well let's just say it started a while ago...

_(A few days after Shirou's victory over Archer Gilgamesh...)_

Shirou was walking in one of Chaldea's hallways, minding his own business. As he did, he came across Boudica, who appears to be looking for him. As she saw him, she immediately came up to him, looking at him.

Shirou was a little creeped out by Boudica's and asked, "Um...can I help you?"

"Excuse me, but are you Emiya Shirou? Arturia and her counterparts' scabbard, consort, and queen?" Boudica asked.

"Y-Yes. And you are?"

Boudica smiled. "My name is Boudica! Nice to meet you Emiya Shirou! Don't mind the formalities."

"I-I see. Nice to meet you too Boudica...how did you know who I am?"

"Well, let's just say I've been hearing how much great care you've been giving to Arturia and her counterparts from her knights and that mage known as Merlin."

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Figures..."

"Anyways, do you want to have a chat with me?"

"Sure, but why though?"

"Well, aside from you being famous for beating that arrogant King of Heroes along with slicing his arm off, I want to know more about you since you're Arturia and her counterpart's scabbard, consort, and queen."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. After all, I just want to know about the person that my successor is in love with," Boudica said with a smile on her face.

Shirou blushed at what Boudica said. "O-Okay then. Shall we move to a better location then?"

"Yeah!"

And Shirou and Boudica moved to the cafeteria in which they had their conversation together. As they had their conversation, they eventually became friends.

And that's the story of how Shirou knew Boudica...

_(Back to the present...)_

Shirou let out a small sigh as he continued washing the dishes. "Man, there's so many dishes to wash here...well, to be fair, I did have to feed Arturia and her counterparts in which they have the stomach compacity of a black hole..."

"Shirou! Are you done with the dishes over there?" Boudica asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah! All that's left is for you to dry them," Shirou replied as he handed her the last wet plate.

"Great! Thanks, Shirou!" Boudica replied as she took the last plate from Shirou and soon began to dry it off. As she did, she put the dried plate onto another plate.

Which in turn, created a small pillar of cleaned plates.

"Phew! We're done now!" Boudica said with a sigh of relief as they were done with doing the dishes.

"Yeah...honestly, I feel a bit exhausted from washing all of those dishes. Even though I've done this many times..." Shirou said with a tiny moan in his voice.

Boudica let out a small chuckle. "Yeah. I feel that way too when it comes to feeding Arturia and her counterparts as well. Even with the extra help around here, it feels like a battle every day here in the kitchen."

"Hey, you know what they say, the kitchen is a battlefield."

"Yeah. That's funny, your counterpart said that the first time I was here."

"Really?"

"Yeah. He gave me that helpful piece of advice when I started cooking here in the cafeteria. At first, I didn't understand why he said that...until the crowd came in," Boudica said as she started to remember her first day in the cafeteria.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. And ever since then, I never let my guard down when I'm in the kitchen."

"I see..." Shirou said as he took off the apron and began to sit down at a table and got some rest. As he sat down on a chair, Boudica then handed him a glass of water. "Oh, thanks," he said as he took the glass of water from Boudica.

"You're welcome," Boudica replied as she sat down next to Shirou. "You know, I'm glad that you're here."

Shirou was confused with what Boudica just said. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well...it's like this. Before you arrived here, I've never seen Arturia or any of her counterparts let out a genuine smile before. Of course, there were times where I did see her smile, but it looked like she was missing something."

"Is that so?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah. Even with her knights around, she still looked like she was missing something. However, ever since you arrived here, Arturia and her counterparts seem a bit livelier than before. I thank you for that Shirou. You have my gratitude. And you better keep making her happy," Boudica said with a smile on her face.

Shirou blushed for a moment before saying, "Yeah. Yeah, I will. That's something I decided a long time ago."

Boudica's smile grew even further. "Good," she said as she took a sip of water from her glass. "Although I wish Nero and her counterparts would stop barging into Shirou's business every time they meet. I swear, she needs to stop interfering with Arturia's love life..." Boudica thought as she remembered an event that happened in the past...

_(A while ago...)_

Boudica was walking in Chaldea's hallway, minding her own business. As she did, she passed by an event that annoyed her to no extent.

It was Nero and her counterparts dragging Shirou around.

"Come on my Praetor! Let us go to the mall next!" Saber Nero said.

"Exactly! There are new clothes over there that we want you to try on!" Caster Nero said.

"Umu! And there are some things we want to show you!" Bride Nero said.

As Nero and her counterparts continued dragging Shirou to the mall, Boudica looked at the scene and sighed. "Damn it Nero..." she thought.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Man, it still bothers me how Nero and her counterparts has an eye of Shirou here..." Boudica thought as she stopped thinking about that event and continued drinking her glass of water. "By the way, there's something that's on my mind for quite a while."

Shirou then looked at Boudica and asked, "What is it?

"Why is it that Arturia's knights call you Queen Shirou despite you being a male?"

Shirou let out a sigh. "That's something Mordred came up with when I first met with the Knights of the Round because of my relationship with Arturia and her counterparts."

"I see."

For a moment, Shirou and Boudica were quiet as they were sipping their glasses of water. After a moment of silence, Boudica continued the conversation.

"Hey Shirou, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well...why does Arturia and her counterparts hate the King of Heroes? I mean, I know he has a big ego in which some servants would find it annoying, but why do Arturia and her counterparts despise him For example, when the King of Heroes arrived here, Arturia and her counterparts were in a bad mood for quite a while. And that meeting...well..."

"It didn't end well, right?"

"Y-Yeah!" Boudica said as she was surprised at how Shirou knew the event ended.

Shirou sighed again. "He still hasn't changed at all...that King of Heroes..." he muttered in disappointment.

Boudica then turned to Shirou. "You know the King of Heroes?"

"Yeah. Remember when I said that I was Arturia's master during a holy grail war?"

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Well, the King of Heroes was the last servant me and Arturia had to go up against, and here's the thing. Apparently, the King of Heroes had a thing for Arturia and well...tried to take her for herself...without her consent."

At that moment, Boudica's mood went sour upon Shirou's explanation. "What?! He tried to take Arturia for herself?! Without her consent!? How barbaric of him! And how dare he calls himself the King of Heroes?! That's an act that doesn't fit for a king! He's as bad as Nero and her counterparts! Or maybe even worse!"

Shirou let out a sigh. "I know. Honestly, sometimes I wonder why he's known as the King of Heroes when most of the time he acts like a well...it's hard for me to say, but-"

"A complete asshole?"

Shirou paused for a moment before continuing. "Yes."

Boudica sighed. "I agree with you. Sometimes I don't even under why he's called the King of Heroes as well when he has an ego that's so inflated..." she said as she drank her glass of water. "Honestly, I feel glad that you cut his arm off during that day! That should teach him a lesson!"

Shirou chucked at what Boudica said. "You aren't the first person to say that..."

"Obviously. You have no idea how many people here were happy with you slicing the King of Heroes' arm off! I swear, some servants were even having a party after that!"

"I can see that...and it's because of that event, practically everyone here knows me," Shirou replied as he sipped on his glass of water again.

"Yeah. Honestly, the next time I see him, I should probably punch him in the face! Just like what your ancestor did in the past!" Boudica ranted as she was mad from Archer Gilgamesh's actions.

Shirou let out an inward sigh. "I have a funny feeling that's not going to end well...speaking of which, I'm surprised that Muramasa actually punched Gilgamesh right into the ceiling. I mean, even with all that strength as a blacksmith, it's crazy how he managed to pull that off. Furthermore, when Merlin gave me photos of the event, I was surprised with how it ended with Gilgamesh's body hanging in the air like a cartoon ending of a fight," he thought.

"Shirou? Are you okay?" Boudica asked, snapping Shirou out of her thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I was just in my thoughts for a moment after what you said about punching the King of Heroes in the face the next time you see him," Shirou replied.

"I see..."

For a moment, Shirou and Boudica were silent as they were drinking their glasses of water. Eventually, Shirou was done with his glass of water and got out of his seat to refill his glass. As he was refilling his glass of water, he then said something to Boudica.

"Hey Boudica, I have something to say to you."

Boudica turned to Shirou and asked, "What is it?"

Shirou let out a small breath before continuing. "Thank you for taking of Arturia and her counterparts before I arrived here."

Boudica smiled at Shirou's words. "No problem. After all, I want to see Arturia and her counterparts happy."

Shirou let out a small smirk. "The way you're acting, you sound like you're Arturia's big sister," he said as he was done filling his glass with water.

Boudica let out a chuckle. "To be fair, I want to look out for Arturia and her counterparts, and I want to be like a relative's elder sister to her. I regard her as a queen who protected Britannia, something that I wasn't able to do in my entire life. Of course, that extends to her counterparts, the Knights of the Round, and any British-based servant."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. In fact, now that I think about it, you're practically a British servant as well."

Shirou nearly spat out of his glass of water. "W-What? I'm a British servant?"

"Yeah."

"But why though? I'm Japanese."

"Well yeah, but you're also Queen Shirou to Arturia, her counterparts, the Knights of the Round, and that mage of theirs. As such, you are part of British royalty, therefore making you British. Doesn't it work that way?"

Shirou nervously chucked at what Boudica said. "Boudica...it doesn't work that way, well...in this era that is..."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Huh. Still though, you're a British servant in my eyes considering your relationship with Arturia and her counterparts."

"Well, if you say so. By the way, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well...do you mind making your famous galette again tonight? I do like the taste of it."

Boudica smiled. "Sure. I don't mind."

And the two continued their conversation...


	62. Lily's Training and Accident

"Hah! Hah! Hah! Yaaah!" Arturia Lily yelled as she was swinging Caliburn repeatedly. Right now, Arturia Lily was practicing her swordsmanship alone in the training room to improve herself and her skills and swordsmanship.

_"I need to get stronger! For master's sake! For everyone's sake! And for Shirou's sake!"_

As she continued swinging Caliburn, a memory came into her mind.

Which was Shirou swinging Tsumugari Muramasa at Archer Gilgamesh.

_(A while ago...)_

**"The heart of the blade is right here!  
**  
Take this, this is my Tsumugari Muramasa!"

Shirou then swung his sword at EA, creating a light that was so bright, everyone inside of Shirou's reality marble shielded their eyes. After the light faded, everyone uncovered their eyes and the result the match between Shirou and Archer Gilgamesh was shown.

Shirou won, and Archer Gilgamesh lost, including an arm as well.

The results were clear. Not only did Shirou survive EA, but he also sliced through it and cut Archer Gilgamesh's arm off as well.

At that moment, everyone was in awe at what just happened.

Especially Arturia Lily.

_(Back to the present...)_

"That technique...that swordsmanship...and that sword...I want to be the same as Shirou! I want to be as strong as him, so I can protect him, master, and everyone else!" Arturia Lily thought as she continued swinging her sword.

After the practice match between Shirou and Archer Gilgamesh, Arturia Lily was inspired by Shirou's Tsumugari Muramasa along with his swordsmanship, and she had been training herself every day in the training room, trying to reach the same level as Shirou holds. And ever since that day, Arturia Lily put herself through a rigorous training regime which would involve her practicing her swordsmanship whenever she has free time.

Normally, she would be alone doing this routine, but sometimes she would also get help from her counterparts and any of the Knights of the Round.

Heck, she even had some help from Merlin, although that was short-lived because of some pranks he pulled on her.

"Phew. Just one more set and I'll be done with today's training regime...speaking of which, I could use someone as a sparring partner right now..."

However, as soon as she thought of that, a certain servant soon came into the room.

It was Bedivere, one of the Knights of the Round.

"My king," Bedivere said as he bowed.

"Hm? Oh, hey there Bedivere!" Arturia Lily said happily as she turned around and noticed him coming in. "How are you doing today?"

"I'm doing fine my king," Bedivere replied.

"I see. Anyways Bedivere, can you help me with something?"

"Sure, my king. What is it?"

"Well, can you help me with practicing my swordsmanship?"

Bedivere quickly complied. "Of course, my king."

Arturia Lily and Bedivere then headed towards the training arena. As they did, they drew their swords at each other. "Are you ready my king?" Bedivere asked.

"Yes!" Arturia Lily replied enthusiastically.

"Well then...here I come then!"

In an instant, Bedivere then lunged towards Arturia Lily with his sword in his hand. As he did, he then swung at her, forcing her to block his strike with Caliburn. Arturia Lily then pushed Bedivere back and then swung Caliburn at him. However, Bedivere dodged her swing by moving to the side and then swung his sword at her as well.

However, Arturia Lily saw that as well and dodged Bedivere's swing as well. "Wow. Bedivere's swordsmanship has improved. Perhaps by any chance, did Shirou give him some advice?" she thought as she swung at Bedivere. However, Bedivere blocked her strike.

Afterwards, the two separated from each other, trying to gain some distance from each other. For a moment, nothing happened between the two as they were trying to gain some breath from their earlier clashes.

"I see...that you have improved...my king..." Bedivere said.

"Yeah...but I still have a long way to go...especially when it comes to them..." Arturia Lily replied while gathering some breath for herself.

At that moment, Bedivere was intrigued with what Arturia Lily said. "Them? You mean your counterparts?"

"Yeah, but...there's one more person..." she said with a blush on her face.

Upon seeing the blush on Arturia Lily's face, Bedivere instantly knew who the person she was talking about. "Let me guess, Queen Shirou huh?" he thought.

"Bedivere?" Arturia Lily asked, snapping Bedivere out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Ah, it's nothing. Anyways, let's continue the match, shall we?"

"Y-Yes!"

Soon, Arturia Lily and Bedivere regained some of their stamina back and began positioning themselves. For a moment, nothing happened between the two as they were waiting who would make the first move.

Then in an instant, Arturia Lily lunged towards Bedivere with a swing. However, Bedivere blocked that her swing and then pushed her back a bit. However, Arturia Lily didn't stop there and continued assaulting Bedivere with multiple swings from Caliburn, forcing Bedivere to block each strike while moving back a bit.

Noticing that she was getting the advantage here, Arturia Lily then quickened the pacing of her swinging. In an instant, she let out one giant final swing, hoping to finish the match.

"This match...is mine!" Arturia Lily thought as she swung her sword to where Bedivere was.

However, Bedivere saw that swing coming through and immediately dodged it. In an instant, he turned his body to Arturia Lily's back and gently tapped her on the back with his hand.

"Well then, looks like I win," Bedivere said with a smile.

Arturia Lily pouted and sighed for a moment. "Dang it, I thought I had you there..." she muttered.

Bedivere chuckled. "Well, better luck next time my king."

Arturia Lily let out a sigh. "Still though, that was some great swordsmanship over there Bedivere," she said with a smile on her face.

Bedivere slightly blushed upon hearing praise from Arturia Lily and replied, "T-Thanks. But most of the credit goes to Shirou."

"Really?" Arturia Lily asked.

"Yeah. He gave me some great advice one day during a practice match where I was sparring against him."

"Is that so...what kind of advice did he you?" Arturia Lily asked as she was interested in what Shirou said to Bedivere.

"Well, he did tell me that I swing too wide, which would leave me open for enemy attacks. A solution that he offered me was that I shouldn't fully swing my blade. Instead, I should trust it forward with a half-swing."

"Wow. That sounds like good advice there..." Arturia Lily said in awe.

"Yeah. Not only that, but after applying what Queen Shirou said to my technique, I was able to go up against the Knights of the Round."

"Wow..."

"Yeah. Anyways, do you want to continue?"

"Y-Yes!"

And Arturia Lily and Bedivere soon continued their practice together. As they did, Arturia Lily had one thought in mind.

_"Hm...if Bedivere improved his training upon meeting Shirou...maybe the same can happen for me as well..."_

_(The next day...)_

Shirou was walking in one of Chaldea's hallways, minding his own business. As he did, he passed by the training room and then stopped for a moment.

At that moment, he saw something that intrigued him for a moment.

It was Arturia Lily, who was practicing her swordsmanship alone.

_"Hm? Isn't that the younger version of Arturia over there? And she seems to be practicing her swordsmanship..."_

For a moment, Shirou didn't say anything as the image of the many times he and Arturia had their sparing matches in the dojo back when he was alive. The form of her posture was still fresh in his mind as he remembered it like a precious memory.

_"I suppose that from that point on, she gained a lot of combat experience..."_

After a few more minutes of watching Arturia Lily swinging her sword around, Shirou then decided to head into the training room.

Meanwhile, Arturia Lily continued practicing her swordsmanship undisturbed. "Yah! Hyaa!" she yelled as she kept swinging her sword. As she continued swinging, she then took a small break to get some breath.

It was then that she noticed Shirou coming in.

"Ah! Shirou!" Arturia Lily said cheerfully.

"Hey there Arturia. What are you up to now?" Shirou asked with a smile on his face.

"Oh. Just practicing my swordsmanship for today."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah! By the way, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well...if you don't mind...can you help me with my swordsmanship?"

"Eh? Why?"

"Well, yesterday I had a mock battle against Bedivere. What happened was that he beat me and at the end of the match, he told me that you improved his swordsmanship to the point where he's able to against his fellow members of the Knights of the Round. Is that true?"

Shirou sheepishly laughed. "Y-Yeah."

Arturia Lily's eyes sparkled. "Great! Now will you help me with my swordsmanship?"

"Well..."

"Please?" Arturia Lily asked as she looked at Shirou upwards with her puppy eyes that seems to have stars in them.

Upon seeing Arturia Lily's puppy eyes, Shirou knew he could not resist seeing those eyes, especially from Arturia.

Well, her Lily version that is.

Sighing inwardly, Shirou was not able to reject Arturia Lily's request. "Sure."

Arturia Lily let out a huge smile. "Great! Follow me then! And don't hold back on me!" she said excitedly as he hurried towards the training arena. Shirou soon followed her. As they arrived at the arena, Arturia Lily drew Caliburn while Shirou unsheathed his katana from its scabbard. "Ready?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Well then...here I go!"

In an instant, Arturia Lily lunged herself in front of Shirou, seeing an opening to strike at. However, Shirou quickly blocked it and pushed her back by a bit. Shirou then went towards her and swung at her in which Arturia Lily blocked his strike as well. Soon, Shirou and Arturia Lily began clashing with each other, each strike from their swords met with each other. As Shirou and Arturia Lily kept clashing with each other, Shirou then saw an opening on Arturia Lily's side and tried to exploit it.

However, Arturia Lily saw that and dodged to the left. She then went for a sword strike on him, but Shirou turned around quickly and blocked her attack, reaching a stalemate between the two.

Eventually, Shirou and Arturia Lily had enough and moved back to their corners of the arena, gasping for air and stamina.

"Wow...that was amazing Shirou..." Arturia Lily said.

"Yeah...you were great too Arturia..." Shirou replied.

"Really?" Arturia asked happily.

"Yeah, although you should square your shoulders more when you're striking. Not only that, but you should use your hips more. It will generate more power in your swings."

Arturia Lily blushed for a moment before following the advice Shirou gave her. "Like this?" she asked as she squared her shoulders.

"Yeah, just like that," Shirou replied.

Arturia Lily was happy with the praise she was getting from Shirou. "L-Let's continue, shall we?"

Shirou smiled. "Yeah."

And Shirou and Arturia Lily continued their training. As they did, Arturia Lily was following Shirou's advice during their clashes and she found out that Shirou's advice was working.

Bit by bit, Arturia Lily was pushing Shirou back.

"Wow! Shirou's advice is helping me! It feels like my movements are a lot easier to do as well! I think I can do this!" Arturia Lily thought as she continued to push Shirou back. Eventually, Shirou moved back for a little bit in which Arturia Lily was not going to let that chance escape.

However, it was then that Shirou and Arturia Lily experienced a little accident.

Because as Arturia Lily got close to where Shirou was, she got a bit too excited...and accidently kneeded him in his balls.

In an instant, Shirou fell over to the ground, kneeling as he was cradling his balls from the pain he just experienced.

"Ah! I'm sorry Shirou! Are you all right?!" Arturia Lily asked as she was worried about what she just did to him.

"Don't...worry...I think...I'm going...to be fine..." Shirou muttered.

However, it was then that Shirou passed out from the pain.

"Shirou!"

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Mmmmh...mmmmhhh..." Shirou moaned as he was opening his eyes.

"Ah! Shirou! You're awake!" Arturia Lily said with a sigh of relief.

"Y-Yeah," Shirou muttered as he was now regaining his sight. As he did, he noticed two things.

One was that there was an ice pack on where his balls were.

And the other was that his head was on her lap.

"W-What happened?"

"Well...you passed out earlier and I went into the kitchen and grabbed an ice pack for...well, you know-" Arturia said, but was cut off from Shirou.

"You don't need to continue. I get the gist of it now," Shirou replied.

"I see..."

For a moment, there was silence between the two as Shirou as his head on Arturia Lily's lap while Arturia Lily was playing with Shirou's head.

"Listen Shirou, I'm sorry about earlier..." Arturia Lily said.

Shirou sighed. "It's okay. I forgive you."

"But I hurt you though! I hit you!"

"Was it on purpose though?"

"Well, no, but-"

"Then all is forgiven. None of us predicted that was going to happen, and it wasn't on purpose. Therefore, I forgive you Arturia," Shirou said with a smile on his face.

Arturia Lily blushed upon seeing Shirou's face. "W-Well then, guess everything is forgiven then?"

"Yeah. Everything is fine now."

Arturia Lily let out a sigh of relief. "Well then, guess I don't have anything to worry about now," she thought.

"By the way Arturia."

"Hm? What is it Shirou?"

"Do you want to continue training?"

Arturia Lily thought about it and replied, "No. Let me stay like this for a while," with a smile on her face.

"As you wish."

And the two remained like that for quite a while...


	63. Da Vinci Discovers Kamen Rider

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: I do not own Kamen Rider Wizard. Toei does.

Da Vinci let out a sigh as she was walking in Chaldea's hallway, minding her own business. As she was walking in the hallway, her mind was thinking of many things to do.

Or rather, she was trying to think of what to do, but wasn't able to because of the lack of ideas and motivation to do. And she was struggling because of it.

_"Hm...wonder what should I make today? Although the problem is that I'm all out of fresh ideas to use, and nothing is coming into my head now. Is this is what Osakabehime or Jeanne D'Arc Alter or Blackbeard feels like when they're out of ideas for what projects they want to make? Wow, guess even a genius like me gets an idea block once in a while..."_

As Da Vinci continued walking in the hallway, she noticed something that was on the ground. She then got closer to it and picked it up, wanting to know what it is.

What she picked up was a DVD case, and it said, "Kamen Rider Wizard Vol 1."

Upon reading the title, Da Vinci got a little bit interested in the DVD case. "Kamen Rider Wizard? What is that? Don't tell me Ritsuka dropped one of his things again...I swear, he needs to learn to check his pockets sometimes. Although who is Kamen Rider Wizard? Is he related to magecraft? And this DVD case...is it a life story or something?" she thought.

After examining the DVD case multiple times, Da Vinci let out a small shrug. "Eh. I'll take a look at the DVD now. Ritsuka won't mind if I borrow this for a small bit. Maybe this DVD could give me some ideas..." she thought.

Da Vinci then went back to her workshop/room, opened the contents of the DVD case, inserted it into the DVD player she had installed in her room, and began to watch it.

_"Well, let's see how it goes..."_

_(A few hours later...)_

_"That was amazing! The action, the interactions, everything about it amazes me! Not only that, but the many gadgets, rings, were amazing! Especially the belts and how they work! Oh man, thinking about them makes me want to build them myself!"_

Da Vinci the took out the DVD from the DVD player and put it back in the case. "I wonder if Ritsuka has any more volumes for me to borrow..." she thought.

At that moment, Da Vinci got addicted to Kamen Rider Wizard.

_(The next day...)_

Ritsuka was in his room, trying to find a certain DVD case.

"Where is the DVD case for Kamen Rider Wizard Vol 1? It should be around here somewhere. I swear, did I drop it in one of the hallways? If so, then then I'm going to have to search throughout in Chaldea to see where it is..." Ritsuka thought as he looked under his bed to see if the DVD case was there.

As time passed, he wasn't able to find his DVD. Eventually, he gave up searching his room.

_"Well, looks like it's not here. Might as well go outside to find it..."_

Ritsuka then proceeded to clean up his room and head towards his door. He then soon went through each hallway to see if the DVD case was there. Not only that, but he also checked with every nearly every servant to see if anyone has ever seen it, but sadly, no one has ever saw it.

Ritsuka let out a sigh as his search came out to nothing. "Well, looks like my search came out with no results. Might as well try again tomorrow."

However, as Ritsuka continued walking, he ended up crossing paths with Da Vinci.

And she was holding the DVD case Ritsuka was searching for.

"Hey there...Ritsuka..." Da Vinci said.

"Hey there Da Vinci. By the way, that DVD case you're holding...is that-" Ritsuka replied as he looked at the DVD case she was holding.

"Yes Ritsuka. This is the Kamen Rider Wizard Vol 1 DVD case," Da Vinci said as she cut Ritsuka off from finishing his sentence.

Ritsuka let out a sigh of relief as he now found the DVD case he was looking for. "Da Vinci, by any chance did you look at what was inside of it?"

"Yeah. Why? Wasn't I allowed to?" Da Vinci asked.

"Well no. It's just that...well, I've been searching for that for quite a while, and I was wondering where I lost it."

"I see...well then, here it is Ritsuka," Da Vinci said with a smile on her face as she handed him the DVD case.

"Great. Thank you for holding it on for me Da Vinci."

"No problem. Although there's something I want to ask of you..."

Ritsuka was confused for a moment and asked, "What is it?"

"Well...are there any more volumes of Kamen Rider Wizard?"

For a moment, Ritsuka was processing at what Da Vinci just said. "D-Did Da Vinci ask if there were any more DVD volumes of Kamen Rider Wizard? Oh boy, I got a bad feeling about this..." he thought.

"Ritsuka?" Da Vinci asked, snapping out Ritsuka out of his mind.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing. Anyways, yeah. I do have the rest of the volumes in my room. Why?"

"Oh, well...I need to borrow them for a while. Is that okay with you?"

"Well yeah."

Da Vinci let out a huge smile. "Great! Let's go then!" she exclaimed as she soon ran towards Ritsuka's room, leaving him behind. As Ritsuka looked at Da Vinci leaving him in the dust, he had one thought in his mind.

_"Oh no, I think I may have given her an addiction to Kamen Rider...just like how Romani got addicted to Magi-Mari..."_

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Days have passed since Ritsuka has lent Da Vinci his DVD volumes of Kamen Rider Wizard, and ever since then, nobody has ever seen her.

In fact, the last time anyone has saw her was when she was walking towards her room with a giant cup of coffee in her hand, and she looked like she didn't sleep at all.

And it was worrying Ritsuka and Mashu.

"Senpai, have you seen Da Vinci lately?" Mashu asked.

"Well, no Mashu. Last time I saw her was when she was going back to her room with a giant cup of coffee in her hand," Ritsuka replied.

"I see. Still though, I'm worried..."

"I can't blame you. This is the first time I've ever seen Da Vinci acting like this. Even when it comes to making something and having either me or Shirou testing it out, it doesn't even take that long to make."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. And honestly...all of this maybe my fault to begin with."

Mashu was confused. "What do you mean senpai? Why do you think so?"

"Well...a while ago, I accidently dropped one of my DVD cases and lost it for a while. Then Da Vinci happened to pick it up and well...looked at the contents of the DVD."

"Were the contents of the DVD harmful?"

"Well no."

"Then why do you think that it's your fault?" Mashu asked as she was confused with the situation.

"Well...let's just say...that the contents of the DVD contained a certain show of a certain franchise that appeals to both kids and adults. And the show is quite addicting."

"How addicting are they?"

"Well...it's so addicting that in an instant, upon finishing an episode, you want to watch more and more until the series end."

Mashu was shocked upon hearing Ritsuka's answer. "It's that addicting?" she asked.

"Yeah. Trust me, ever since my childhood, I watched every show from that franchise. Even now, I still do," Ritsuka replied.

Mashu was silent after hearing Ritsuka's words. "Jeez, just what kind of franchise can be that addicting for senpai to watch ever since his childhood? It must be really popular back where Senpai was from. And it appeals to both kids and adults...what kind of franchise is that?" she thought.

"Mashu?"

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing senpai. Anyways, what are we going to do?"

For a moment, Ritsuka was silent as he was thinking of what to do. After a few minutes of silence, he came up with a solution. "For now, let's just go over to where Da Vinci is."

"Great idea senpai."

And the two headed off to where Da Vinci's workshop is. Eventually, the two arrived at Da Vinci's workshop. "Da Vinci? Are you there?" Ritsuka said as he knocked on the door to see if Da Vinci would respond.

There was no response.

"Da Vinci, me and Mashu are coming in now."

Still no response.

"Okay. We're about to come in now."

Ritsuka and Mashu then went inside Da Vinci's room/workshop. As they did, they were baffled with what they just saw.

Inside of Da Vinci's room were multiple belts of intricate designs along with some weapons and a lot of rings. Not only that, but there was a stack of DVD cases along with her tv still on.

And in the middle of all of that was Da Vinci, who was sleeping on her desk.

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Da Vinci...don't tell me you binge watched the entire Kamen Rider Wizard series...and in one sitting..."

"Uh senpai...all of those DVD cases...are they yours?" Mashu asked.

"Yes Mashu. All of those DVD cases are mine, and I lent them to Da Vinci," Ritsuka said as he was navigating through the giant mess that was in Da Vinci's room. "Judging by the looks of this, it seems that Da Vinci used my DVD cases as a source of inspiration for making new mystic codes or such."

"Eh?! All of these are mystic codes?!" Mashu asked as she grabbed a blanket from Da Vinci's bed and put it on her.

"Yeah. And it seems that she nearly made all of the items from the show come to life," Ritsuka said as he picked up a WizardDriver mystic code/belt and inspected it. "And wow, she really did go all out with making it. The design, the shape, heck, even the weight feels about right too. I swear, if this gets out on the collectors' market, this would make a giant profit...speaking of which, I wonder what would happen if I put it on my waist?"

Ritsuka then put the mystic code/belt on his waist. As he did, the belt suddenly connected from one side to the other, surrounding itself on Ritsuka's waist.

"Okay, I did not expect this...or should I by now?"

"Senpai? Are you all right?" Mashu asked as she noticed the belt latched itself onto Ritsuka.

"Yeah Mashu, although there's something I want to check out first..." Ritsuka replied.

"What is it?"

Ritsuka then looked around the room to see if Da Vinci has created that item. Eventually, he found it as it was on top of a pile of wizard rings.

Which was the Flame Wizard Ring.

Ritsuka then put the ring on his right middle finger. After he did so, he then flicked the switch on the belt, making the hand design go right.

It was then that the belt said something that shocked Mashu, but not Ritsuka.

 **"Shabadoobi Touch Henshin!"  
**   
"Shabadoobi Touch Henshin!"

Mashu was startled for a moment. "S-Senpai! That belt is talking! It must be cursed!"

"Relax Mashu, that's a function of the belt. It's supposed to go like this," Ritsuka replied in a calm tone of voice to calm Mashu down.

"I-Is that so?"

"Yeah. Alright, now to see if this actually works..."

Ritsuka then placed his right hand over the belt. In an instant, the driver scanned the Flame Wizard Ring that was on Ritsuka's finger, instantly activating the transformation sequence.

**"Flame, please: Hi-Hi, Hi-Hi-Hi!"**

In an instant, Ritsuka was turned into Kamen Rider Wizard. The outfit itself consisted to a helmet that is a larger version of the Flame Wizard Ring, red, black and silver robes with the shoulder guards that has engraved dragon symbols, gloves, and a longcoat.

There was a moment of silence between Ritsuka and Mashu as they were trying to process what just happened. "Uh senpai...did you just...transform?" Mashu asked.

"Yes Mashu. I did," Ritsuka replied.

"Are you okay in there?"

"Yeah. I don't feel anything wrong in here," Ritsuka said as he did a few punches to test the suit out. "This feeling...it's like I'm Kamen Rider Wizard himself!" he thought excitedly.

As he continued testing it out with Mashu watching, it was then that the door to Da Vinci's workshop/room opened.

And the person who opened the door was Emiya Shirou.

"Da Vinci, I got the...magic stones...you needed..." Shirou said as he looked at Ritsuka who was wearing the Kamen Rider Wizard outfit and Mashu. "Ah...oh...hey there master, Mashu..."

"Hey there Shirou..."

"Hi Shirou-san..."

For a moment, there was silence between the three as they were trying to figure what to say in the situation they have created themselves.

"So...Shirou...if you're wondering why I'm wearing this...well..." Ritsuka said.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Let me guess, you found the driver and the ring based on the tv show you used to watch and wanted to try it on to see if works. Am I correct?"

Ritsuka and Mashu were speechless at how Shirou managed to get the correct answer. "Y-Yes, but how did you know?" Ritsuka asked.

Shirou sighed again. "Well, it's a long story..."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, let me guess this straight, one day, you happened to come upon Da Vinci making mystic codes based on the TV show senpai used to watch, correct?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah," Shirou replied.

"I see. So, what happened next?"

"Well, afterwards, I was being used as Da Vinci's assistant against my will to test out the drivers along with the many rings she made."

"How did you get the magic stones? From what I know, you need magic stones to make the rings," Ritsuka asked.

"Well, we used magic jewels in place of the magic stones. As for how we got them, well...Ishtar had a hand in it."

"Ishtar? She gave you magic jewels? But how?" Mashu asked.

"Well...I had to do something for her..." he said as he began to recall the event between him and Ishtar...

_(A while ago...)_

"Ishtar!" Shirou said as he was trying to get her attention.

"Hm? Emiya-kun?" Ishtar replied as she turned around.

"Ishtar...I have a favor to ask for you..." he muttered.

In an instant, Ishtar started to act smug upon hearing that Shirou needs a favor from her. "Oh, and what kind of favor do you need from me Emiya-kun?" she asked.

Shirou gulped before saying his answer. "I-I need to ask for some jewels from you..."

Ishtar was shocked. "Huh?"

"Y-Yeah, I need to ask for some jewels from you..."

For a moment, Ishtar was silent for a moment. Then she started interrogating Shirou.

"And why do you need jewels from a goddess like me? One thing that I know about you is that your magecraft doesn't require any jewels of the sort. So why do you need some now?" she asked menacingly.

"Well...Da Vinci wanted some jewels to make rings that can conduct magic..." Shirou replied.

For a moment, Ishtar was silent after Shirou's words. Upon hearing nothing from Ishtar, Shirou thought he made her mad. "Oh boy, I think she's mad..."

Then Ishtar placed her hands on Shirou's shoulders. "Okay, I'll give you the jewels, but in exchange...you'll give me some of the rings," she said as her eyes changed into ones filled with greed.

Shirou let a sigh of relief. "Phew. At least she didn't shoot me with a Gandr...although those eyes...I smell greed from them..." he thought.

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's how Ishtar came into the picture," Shirou said as he was done retelling the story of how Ishtar got involved in it.

"I see. So, what happened next?" Mashu asked.

"Well, Ishtar gave the jewels that were needed to make the wizard rings, and Da Vinci spent a while making both the drivers and rings as well."

"How did that go?" Ritsuka asked as he was interested with how the testing of the rings went.

"Well...the tests...were quite weird..." Shirou said as he began to tell one event of a ring test...

_(A while ago...)_

"This ring Da Vinci?" Shirou asked as he was holding a ring in his hand.

"Yes. Try that on and see what it does," Da Vinci replied.

"Okay."

Shirou then put the ring on his right middle finger and scanned it over the belt. As he did, a command came out from the belt.

**"Smell, please."**

In an instant, Shirou started to emit a horrible smell that would even make servants nearly drop dead upon smelling. Da Vinci had to pinch her nose to prevent herself from smelling, but a tiny bit of it got into her nose. As she smelled the tiny bit of it, she was going to pass out from how bad it smells.

However, she said something before she passed out.

"That smells!"

And then she passed out.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Wait, so Da Vinci passed out because of the bad smell you were emitting?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. When I put that ring on and scanned it, I started to emit a horrendous smell that knocked Da Vinci out. Afterwards, I had to clean up the smell with one of the rings and waited until Da Vinci regained consciousness." Shirou replied.

"I see...that must be the smell wizard ring in which the user emits a horrendous smell," Ritsuka said.

"How do you know that master?"

"I've seen it before. Anyways, I'm really sorry about all this Shirou," Ritsuka said as he was apologizing.

"What do you mean master?" Shirou asked as he was confused.

"Because...well...the DVDs that Da Vinci has...well, they were mine to begin with, and I'm starting to think that she may have turned into a fan because of it."

"Why would you think that?"

"Well...the number of rings that are here along with the belts, weapons, and even the motorcycle...it's clear that she's seen all of the episodes."

"How do you know that senpai?"

Ritsuka went serious for a moment. "Trust me. I KNOW."

Upon hearing the serious tone of voice from Ritsuka earlier, Shirou and Mashu had one thought in mind.

_"Just what kind of show did master/senpai watch in his youth...? And just how addictive it is?"_


	64. Class Reunion

Zhuang Liang, or rather Lord El-Melloi the second, or rather Waver Velvet, mentally face-palmed himself at the situation in front of him.

Which was Ishtar and Astraea, or rather Rin and Luvia fighting over one small thing.

Which was who was the better student in Waver Velvet's class when they were alive.

As Ishtar and Astraea were fighting, Shirou was on the sidelines watching the fight go on while drinking his glass of juice. Meanwhile, Sima Yi, or rather Reines El-Melloi Archisorte was watching the fight with a chuckle on her face while making some comments about the two goddesses fighting each other while Grey was looking at the fight fearfully.

"Um...teacher, are you all right?" Gray asked.

Waver Velvet let out a sigh. "I'm fine Gray. I'm just tired," he replied with a moan.

"I see. Do you want me to get something for you to drink teacher?"

"Yeah. Can you hand me a glass of juice later? I'm definitely going to need it soon..."

"Y-Yes." Gray then left Waver's side to get a glass of juice from one the tables. As she did, Waver let out a sigh.

"This was a bad idea..." he thought as his mind went back to what happened earlier...

_(A few hours ago...)_

Waver and Alexander were relaxing in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms in which Alexander was reading a magazine while was laying down on one of the couches, getting a moment of rest after overworking himself...again.

As they were relaxing, it was then that Alexander said something that would spark a future event.

"Hey kid. How are those kids of yours doing?" Alexander said.

"Kids? You mean my students?" Waver replied.

"Yeah."

Waver let out a sigh. "Well, they've been fine actually, although they still remain the same now, even after seperation...especially those two..."

"Those two?"

"Ishtar and Astraea, or rather Rin and Luvia. I swear, they always start a fight whenever they meet each other..."

"Really?"

"Yeah, and it would always start from the smallest accident. For example, one day during one of my lectures, I had the whole class practice their magecraft, and do you want to know what happened next?"

"What?"

"Rin accidently shot a Gandr at Luvia right in the back of the head. Luckily the damage wasn't serious, but...that's where things got messy."

"How so?"

Waver sighed again. "Luvia didn't take the accidental shot well and shot a Gandr right back at Rin in which she also did not take it well and started a huge fight which ended up nearly destroying the classroom."

Alexander was slightly amused upon hearing the fight between Ishtar and Astraea. "Is that so?"

"Yeah. Even now, I still remember the fight...and the amount of damage those two made in the fight! There were giant holes everywhere on the walls! The windows were broken, the tables were nearly destroyed, and some of the staff and students nearby were injured in the process! And don't even get me started on the cost of the damages! I swear, those two will be the death of me one day..."

Alexander laughed at the misfortune his former master went through as a teacher. "Wow. Guess those two seriously made you mad huh?"

"Yeah. If it wasn't for Shirou stopping them back then, then the damages would even be more disastrous, and I would have to go through a giant scolding at the Clock Tower about how I was responsible for the damages..." Waver said with a groan. "After the damage was cleaned up, I gave those two a giant scolding that they shouldn't forget."

Alexander let out a chuckle. "Sounds like you did a good job being a teacher."

"Yeah...although I'm a half-baked teacher at best..." Waver replied.

Alexander then went back to the magazine he was reading earlier. "Speaking of which, you mentioned that Emiya Shirou stopped that fight. How did he stop that fight?"

Waver let out a small sigh. "Well...all he did to stop that fight was just to get between the two and tell time to stop fighting, which is baffling because apparently those two only listen to him for some reason, and I don't even know how! I mean come on, nearly every other student wouldn't dare to go into a fight between those two, and yet, Emiya Shirou, being the reckless idiot that he is, not only comes in between the two and comes out unscathed, but he also calmed them down! I swear, even now, it puzzles me how he managed to calm them down without doing anything!" Waver ranted.

Alexander laughed at Waver's childish rant. "Hahahahahaha! Emiya Shirou is quite the man, isn't he? A man with so many talents. Cooking, cleaning, fixing broken items, fighting... it's a shame that he didn't join my army. Especially since he has the power to seize control of the world..."

"Hey, Emiya Shirou isn't the type of person who would join an army you know, especially under an army which wants to conquer the entire world. He has his own dreams and convictions to follow, and he's sure as hell to stay with them until the bitter end," Waver argued.

"You do have a point there," Alexander said as he turned a page of the magazine he was reading. "By the way, who's the person that always follows you and looks like the King of Knights?"

"Oh her? That's Gray, my assistant and one of my students."

"Assistant? You mean like a strategist or a general? And a little girl like her?"

Waver mentally groaned. "It's nothing like that. Think of it as well...a helper you might say. And plus, don't underestimate her. Believe it or not, she actually possesses Rhongomyniad."

"Wow! I didn't know that."

"Me neither. Well, up until a few months later that is."

Then a moment of silence occurred as Waver continued to relax on the couch while Alexander continued reading his magazine. As he did, a few thoughts came into his head.

_"Wow. So, my former master has four students here in the form two goddesses, a person that looks like the King of Knights, and a man who not only owns two noble phantasms in which one of them is a reality marble while the other is a sword that cuts through destiny, karma, and fate itself, but can also defeat the King of Heroes and his noble phantasm with them...seems like he picked up quite the students to teach...wait a minute, this gives me an idea..."_

Alexander then stopped reading the magazine and put it on a nearby table. "Hey my former master, I have a question to ask for you."

Waver sighed. "What is it?"

"When was the last time you ever met with your students?"

Waver then gave Alexander's question a long thought. "Hm...I suppose a while ago. Why?"

Alexander grinned. "Well...why not have a class reunion with them now all together?"

Waver nearly did a spitake at Alexander's question. "What?"

"Huh? You didn't hear me clearly the first time kid? Then I'll explain it again. Why not have a class reunion with them now all together?"

For a moment, Waver was silent upon hearing Alexander's question. After a few minutes of thinking about it, Waver had his answer.

"No."

Alexander was not amused. "Aw, why not? Isn't it fun to meet with your old students again?"

Waver sighed. "First, I already did that with Shirou and Ishtar. And second, Why should I, stuck at the fourth tier I still be, have to bloody look after other people at a class reunion? Especially since said people happened to be my students?"

"Aw come on. Don't be so uptight you know. Learn to relax a bit, have some fun once in a while, connect with your students."

"For the last time, no," Waver said as he turned around to the other side of the couch, not wanting to see Alexander's face.

Alexander sighed as he now knew what to do to get him to agree. "Well, guess that means I have to do this then..." Alexander then got out of his seat and began to lift Waver up.

"What the-hey?! What are you doing?!" Waver yelled.

"Well, if you're not going to create a class reunion party for your students, then I will!" Alexander replied as he began to carry Waver out of the recreational room.

"Put me down!"

"Never! Now then, let us go secure some tables, food, drinks, plates, and the guests that we need!" Alexander roared pridefully

And Alexander then began to drag Waver throughout all of Chaldea, finding the perfect food, drinks, and decorations for the class reunion party.

_(Back to the present...)_

"I can't believe my former servant just dragged me throughout all of Chaldea gathering all of the materials needed for a class reunion party and somehow rented a private room for all of that to happen. Furthermore, he even managed to not only invite my former students, but also Reines as well. I'm even more surprised that she tagged along as well..." Waver thought.

"Um? Teacher?" Gray said, snapping Waver out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, what is it Gray?"

"H-Here's the glass of juice you asked for..."

"Oh yeah. Thanks." Waver then took the glass of juice from Gray's hands and began to drink it, hoping that it will calm his nerves down. "Hey Gray, talk to Shirou for now. I need to be alone for a moment."

"Y-Yes!" Gray then went over to where Shirou was.

Meanwhile, Shirou looked at the fight between Ishtar and Astraea with a sweat drop on his face. "Wow, they're at it again. Why is it that whenever both of them meet each other, it always ends up turning into a fight?" he thought as he sipped on his glass of juice.

"So Emiya Shirou, what do you think of the party my teacher's former servant came up with?" Gray asked.

"Hm? Oh yeah, the party's great actually," Shirou replied.

"I-I see. I'm glad that you liked it..." Gray said.

"Yeah. Although I'm surprised that Waver-sensei's former servant came up with this."

"Me too. I didn't know he was capable of doing something like this."

"Yeah. By the way, how's life in Chaldea doing for you?"

"Oh. Well...Chaldea is...well, crazy for the most part. The technology and magecraft is high-tech here, there are a lot of servants here, and the number of hallways here is driving me crazy."

"I see...by any chance, did you meet Arturia and her counterparts?"

"Y-Yeah. At first, I was scared of her because of my past from that village and didn't meet her for the first few months. However, with some encouragement from teacher, I was able to have a conversation with her."

"Is that so? How did it turn out?"

Gray let out a smile. "It was great. The conversation itself put all of my fears to rest. You wouldn't believe my emotions when the King of Knights was mad at what the villagers put me through."

"Well then, I'm glad that things went well between you two," Shirou said with a smile on his face.

Gray quickly turned around. "Y-Yeah. M-Me too..."

It was then that Shirou felt someone poking his cheek.

"Oh my, you seem to be quite the smooth talker, aren't you Emiya Shirou?" Reines asked as she poked his cheek.

Shirou let out a sigh as he now knew who was poking his cheek. "Reines...you still haven't changed huh?"

Reines smirked. "And you still haven't changed too. You're still the same reckless idiot with a ridiculous dream..." she said as she continued poking his cheek.

Shirou sighed again. "Will you stop poking me Reines?"

"Nope. In fact, I'm going to inflict more pain on you." Reines then grabbed his cheek and started to tug on it. "Like this."

"Ow...that hurts..." Shirou moaned.

Upon hearing those words from Shirou, Ishtar and Astraea stopped their fighting and shot some of their jewels at Reines, in which she dodged them.

"Oh my..." Reines said.

"Reines! Let go of Sherou this instant and stop picking on him!" Astraea yelled.

"Yeah! And quit picking on him!" Ishtar yelled.

"Eh? Why not? He seems so fun to pick on, don't you think Rin?" Reines replied.

"Geh!" Ishtar yelled as she remembered the many times she teased him during the Fifth Fuyuki Grail War. "A-Anyways, let go of Emiya-kun now this instant!"

Reines let out a pout now that her fun was over. "Fine..." She then let go of Shirou's cheek.

Shirou let out a sigh as Reines's was done pinching his cheek. It was then that Waver began to speak.

"Ahem. I know we were all gathered here by my former servant in which he told me to be a lot more social than I should be, so...how about we just talk for a moment?"

Everyone nodded at Waver's question.

"Great. Now, who wants to start?"

For a moment, everyone was silent as they were trying to figure out how to start the conversation. Eventually, Reines started the conversation.

"Okay, there's a question I want to ask. Emiya Shirou, where the hell were you after you graduated from the Clock Tower? You literally disappeared off the entire earth after you left the Clock Tower! I swear everyone here thought you were dead during that time up until now!" Reines asked.

"Yeah! We want to know too!" Ishtar, Astraea, and Gray asked in unison.

Waver let out a sigh. "This is not going to end well for him...especially if he starts talking about that..." he thought.

Shirou took a deep breath before answering Reines's question. "After graduating from the clock tower, I went on a journey throughout the entire world. During that time, I've experienced many things. One of which was my discovery of my long-lost heritage and my ancestor, Sengo Muramasa."

Everyone silently listened to Shirou's explanation.

"During the meeting with Sengo Muramasa, he gave me the knowledge of the Muramasa blades he created in his lifetime along with his noble phantasm, Tsumugari Muramasa. In exchange for that, he resided in my reality marble."

"Tsumugari Muramasa...isn't that the well-known god killer blade that beat the King of Heroes?" Gray asked.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Yeah. Anyways, after obtaining the Tsumugari Muramasa, well...let's just say...I ended in many situations that were deemed impossible."

At that moment, everyone in the room stared at Shirou. "What kind of situations are we talking about Emiya-kun?" Ishtar asked in a scary tone.

Shirou was silent.

"Emiya-kun?"

Shirou let out a sigh. "Situations that would make the events of the Fourth and Fifth Fuyuki Grail Wars pale in comparison and I don't want to talk about it..."

Everyone was shocked upon hearing Shirou's words. "WAIT, WHAT?!"

Shirou was startled a bit before continuing. "Y-Yeah..."

"What kind of situations are we talking about?!" Reines asked.

"What did you get yourself into Sherou?!" Astraea asked.

"Spit it out Emiya-Kun!" Ishtar yelled.

"All right, what did you do?!" Waver asked.

As Shirou was being hounded by Ishtar, Astraea, Waver, and Reines, Gray decided to step in.

"Stop it! Don't all of you understand that what you're doing is making him uncomfortable?! Give Shirou some space here! He's not going to answer any of your questions if you keep hounding him like this!" Gray yelled.

Everyone was surprised by Gray's outburst, especially Waver.

"Since when was Gray this loud?" they all thought.

Upon realizing what she just did, Gray apologized to Ishtar, Astraea, Waver, and Reines. "Ah, sorry! I just yelled out loud, and-"

"It's okay, we forgive you," Ishtar said.

"Yeah. You were right actually. We can't keep bothering Sherou on a topic he doesn't want to talk about," Astraea said.

"Exactly. If he's not going to say anything now, then we'll just wait later," Reines said.

"Yeah. As much as I hate it, we'll let Shirou keep this information to himself," Waver said.

Gray let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you everyone."

Shirou also let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you for saving me Gray," he said with a smile on his face.

Gray quickly blushed. "I-It's nothing. Anyways, let's continue the conversation, shall we?"

"Yeah. Speaking of which, remember those times when you two would constantly fight over the smallest things?" Reines asked Ishtar and Astraea with a smug look on her face.

Ishtar and Astraea then turned their heads towards the opposite direction, not wanting to look at each other. "Hmph!" they said in unison.

Waver let out a sigh. "Yeah. For example, that one time where you two literally wiped out an entire floor during your fight," he moaned as he remembered the event clearly. "The number of damages you two made...it gave me quite the migraine."

"I remember that teacher. And for the entire day, you locked yourself in your room for quite a while after giving the two a giant lecture," Gray said.

"Yeah. Just one question though, what were you two fight about?" Shirou asked.

Both Ishtar and Astraea were silent after hearing Shirou's question. Seeing the silence, Reines decided to use this opportunity to embarrass Ishtar and Astraea and came up to Shirou.

"Well, let me tell you. They were fighting over the room arrangements."

Shirou was confused at Reines's answer. "Room arrangements?"

Reines let out a smirk. "Yeah. You had an empty room next to your room back the dorm, correct?"

"Yeah."

"Well, it just so happens that Ishtar and Astraea over there wanted that room, so they were fighting over who gets to be the owner of that room."

Ishtar and Astraea blushed after hearing the reason why that fight occurred. "Damn it Reines!" they thought in unison.

However, Waver nearly exploded. "What?! So, let me get this straight. The reason why you two were fighting, which resulted in an entire floor was destroyed and a lot of damage, was to decide who would be next to Shirou's room?!" he yelled.

Ishtar and Astraea were still silent.

"Well?!"

"Y-Yes..." they said in unison.

Waver groaned. "By the root you two will be the death of me..."

Reines let out a giggle. "Well then, that was fun to hear."

For a moment, there was silence in the group as Waver was recovering from the revelation he just experienced earlier. Then Gray decided to speak up.

"You know, this class reunion is quite fun. The food, drinks, everyone chatting, I mean, when was the last time everyone from teacher's class were brought together?" Gray asked.

Everyone then gave Gray's question some thought and realized something.

They haven't done something like since they all graduated from the Clock Tower.

"You're right Gray. It's been a long time since we've done something like this," Ishtar said.

"Yeah. Ever since all of us graduated from the Clock Tower and headed on our own paths..." Astraea said.

"Yeah. Gray stayed as big brother's assistant, me and you two became big shots in the Clock Tower, and Shirou...well, mysteriously disappeared," Reines said.

"Yeah. And I guess we have one person to thank for this reunion..." Waver said.

"Yeah. Master..." Shirou said.

For a moment, everyone was silent as they were thanking Ritsuka for making this happen. After a moment of silence, Shirou then decided to speak up.

"Now then, shall we continue this reunion?" he asked.

Ishtar, Astraea, Gray, Reines, and surprisingly Waver nodded in agreement.

"All right then. Let us continue then!"

And then the class reunion party continued. Everyone continued eating, drinking, and chatting among each other.

As they did, Waver looked at the scene with a smile on his face.

_"This...this isn't so bad. Maybe he was right..."_


	65. What is the Tsumugari Muramasa?

"Hmmmmmmm..." Okita Alter said as she was laying down on the couch lazily while looking at the ceiling above her.

"What is it Alter me?" Okita asked with a sigh.

"Well...I've been thinking about something."

"What is it?"

Okita Alter let out a small sigh before answering her non-altered counterpart's question. "I wonder what happens when Shirou uses Tsumugari Muramasa."

Okita was confused with her altered counterpart's question. "What do you mean by that?"

"Think about it. Shirou is a saber-class servant, which means he uses a sword as his noble phantasm, well one of his noble phantasms, correct?"

"Well yeah, but what does that have to do with your question?"

"Well, it got me thinking, what does Shirou do when he uses Tsumugari Muramasa? Every of the saber-class servants that I've seen would have their noble phantasms either be having a giant beam from the sword or a sequence of sword strikes. However, I don't know what kind of attack Shirou's Tsumugari Muramasa is. Even during that time where all of us witnessed Tsumugari Muramasa in action, we weren't able to see it because of the pillars of flames."

Okita let out a sigh. "Really? That's the thing that was on your mind?" she asked.

"Yeah. Doesn't it bother you too?" Okita Alter asked.

Okita scoffed. "No, it doesn't," she replied. "Although she does have a point. Even after Shirou-san's demonstration of Tsumugari Muramasa, I still don't know what kind of attack it was. All that we know of is that it's an anti-reality noble phantasm that can purge resentment, cut through bonds, fate, causality, and destiny, and slice through the idea of karma itself. Not to mention the fact that it can destroy a reality marble itself. Just what is it?" she thought.

As both Okita and Okita Alter were thinking about it, it was then that a servant came into the room they were in.

"Hey there Okita! Okita Alter!" Musashi exclaimed happily.

"Hm? Oh, hey there Musashi-san!" Okita said.

"Hey there Musashi..." Okita Alter said.

"So, what were you two talking about?" Musashi asked as she sat down on a nearby chair.

"We were talking about what the Tsumugari Muramasa is," Okita Alter replied.

"Eh?! One of Shirou-kun's noble phantasms?!" Musashi asked excitedly

"Yes."

"Okay. Why were you talking about it?"

"Because I really want to know what kind of attack it unleashes. Musashi, your noble phantasm unleashes a beam right?"

"Yeah, and your noble phantasm is a flurry of slashes with a beam from your sword in the end, right?" Musashi asked.

"Yes. The same goes for my counterpart as well, minus the beam part. Anyways, this is where the problem begins. I don't know Shirou-san does with Tsumugari Muramasa. I mean, what happens when he swings his sword? Does a beam come out? Or is it something else that I have never heard of? Doesn't bother you Musashi?" Okita Alter said.

Musashi then gave Okita Alter's question and long thought and said, "Well, now that you mentioned it, you have a point. Back in Shimousa, I don't know what kind of attack Tsumugari Muramasa was when gramps used it. To be fair, I didn't see it back then. And when Shirou-kun used Tsumugari Muramasa, we weren't able to see what it was because of the blinding light from the clash between him and the arrogant so-called King of Heroes."

Okita Alter let out a sigh. "I see. So even in Shimousa, you couldn't see Sengo Muramasa use Tsumugari Muramasa himself?"

"Yes..." Musashi said with defeat in her voice.

"Well, guess we don't have any leads on this then..."

Okita Alter and Musashi let out a sigh as they were trying to solve the mystery behind Tsumugari Muramasa and what happens when Shirou or Muramasa uses it. Meanwhile Okita was dumbfounded at both her altered counterpart's and Musashi's thinking.

_"Seriously? They're having a conversation about Shirou-san's other noble phantasm? Well to be fair, the Tsumugari Muramasa is practically the strongest noble phantasm here in Chaldea in which it not only beat the arrogant King of Heroes' noble phantasm, but it also cut his arm off in the process. It's so well known that nearly everyone here in Chaldea knows about it and among the Japanese servants, it's known as our greatest treasure considering its value among us, even if it is a Muramasa blade. But still, doesn't my altered counterpart have something else to think about? And even now, I still can't believe she's Miyamoto Musashi, the famed swordsman in all of Japan. The Miyamoto Musashi that I knew was a man and wasn't this relaxed and easygoing as well."_

As Okita Alter and Musashi were grumbling about what kind of attack Tsumugari Muramasa, Musashi suddenly got out from the chair she was sitting on and was leaving the room.

"Musashi? Where are you going?" Okita Alter asked.

"Isn't it obvious?! I'm going to where Da Vinci is!" Musashi replied.

"Da Vinci? You mean that genius inventor?"

Musashi nodded in reply.

"Okay, but why?"

"To see if she has any footage of that duel between Shirou-kun and that arrogant King of Heroes! She was there with us during the match and she did say she needed data on Shirou-kun's noble phantasms. Therefore, she must have some footage of the whole thing don't you think?"

Okita Alter thought about what Musashi said and replied, "You do have a point there. She was gathering data over there at the time, so she should at least know what kind of attack Tsumugari Muramasa is."

"Great! Let's go then! Follow me!" Musashi excitedly said as she left the room with Okita Alter following her.

Okita let out a sigh as her altered counterpart was onto something crazy again. "Wait up!" she said as she got off from the couch she was sitting on and followed both her altered counterpart and Musashi.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Da Vinci was in her workshop, relaxing on a chair while enjoying one of her favorite past times, which was drinking coffee from her favorite cup. "Mmmm...today seems to be a quiet day. I have nothing on my mind for the moment, so for now, I'll just sip on my cup of coffee. Maybe I'll rewatch some of the DVDs Ritsuka has gave me a while ago..." she thought as she sipped on her cup of coffee.

However, as she was sipping on her cup of coffee, there was a bunch of sounds coming from her front door. "Well then, wonder who that could be?" she thought as she stopped drinking from her coffee up and headed towards her front door to see who was knocking on it. As she opened it, her guests appeared in front of her.

And they were Okita, Okita Alter, and Musashi.

"Hi there Da Vinci-san," Okita said.

"Hi there Da Vinci," Okita Alter said.

"Hi there Da Vinci!" Musashi said happily.

"Hi there Okita, Okita Alter, Musashi," Da Vinci greeted with a smile on her face. "What can I do for you three?"

"Well, me and Musashi are here to ask you for something," Okita Alter replied.

"And I'm here to make sure she doesn't do anything crazy," Okita replied as she mentioned her altered counterpart.

"Really? What are you asking me from me, the great genius Da Vinci?" Da Vinci asked joyfully.

"Well...do you know what kind of attack Tsumugari Muramasa is," Musashi replied.

Da Vinci was both confused and surprised upon hearing Musashi's answer. "You two wanted to know what kind of attack Tsumugari Muramasa is?" she asked to Okita Alter and Musashi.

"Yes," Okita Alter and Musashi said in unison.

"Why though? Weren't all of you three present during that practice battle where Shirou unleashed Tsumugari Muramasa on the King of Heroes?"

"Yeah, but the clash between the two were so bright we weren't able to see what kind of attack it was," Okita Alter said.

"Exactly. The only thing that we know is that it is an anti-reality noble phantasm that is able to cut through a reality marble with ease. But we don't even know what it looks like," Musashi said.

"I see...so the reason why you two are asking me is because since I took data from that match, you two were hoping that I have at least some footage of what it looks like?" Da Vinci said as she connected the dots together.

"Yes. That's exactly what they're here for Da Vinci," Okita replied with a sigh.

Da Vinci let out a sigh as well. "Well, I suppose I could show you at least. Just come inside," she said as she went back into her room.

Okita Alter and Musashi got excited upon hearing that Da Vinci has footage of the battle and quickly headed inside while Okita let out a sigh following them.

"Gosh those two...but at least I'll know what happens when Shirou-san uses Tsumugari Muramasa..."

Soon, Da Vinci headed over to her computer with Okita, her altered counterpart, and Musashi following her. As she got to her computer, she then checked her computer files to find the file that holds Shirou's use of Tsumugari Muramasa. Eventually, she found the file they were looking for and opened it up.

"All right. Here it is," Da Vinci said as she opened the file up, showing the video of the fight between Shirou and Archer Gilgamesh. Soon, Okita, her altered counterpart, Musashi, and Da Vinci started to watch the entire fight. Eventually, they reached to the part they wanted to see.

The scene where Shirou unleashed Tsumugari Muramasa on Archer Gilgamesh.

They were watching the scene with anticipation, hoping to see what was going to happen when Shirou used Tsumugari Muramasa.

"Here it is! The scene where Shirou-san/Shirou-kun unleashes Tsumugari Muramasa!" Okita, her alter counterpart, and Musashi thought as they famous slash was about to happen. What they expected was that a giant beam was emitted from Tsumugari Muramasa considering the condition and situation Shirou was in.

However, to their disappointment, the video didn't show what Tsumugari Muramasa was as the light of the clash between the two was too bright to record.

"Dang it, it's too bright to see..." Okita Alter thought.

"The light blinded the camera too huh? Well, that was expected..." Okita thought.

"Aw...I want to see what happens when Shirou-kun uses Tsumugari Muramasa..." Musashi thought.

"Um...Okita, Okita Alter, Musashi? Are all of you okay?" Da Vinci asked, snapping the three out of their thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. We're just a little disappointed that we didn't get to see it..." Okita Alter replied.

"Yeah. I wanted to know what it looks like..." Musashi said.

"Me too..." Okita muttered softly so that no one ever heard her.

"I can see why. All of you were expecting something to come out, right?" Da Vinci asked.

"Yeah..." Okita, her altered counterpart, and Musashi said in unison.

For a moment, Okita, her altered counterpart, and Musashi were struggling with the fact that Tsumugari Muramasa was a single sword swing and were trying to figure out if there was any secret behind it.

After a few more minutes of thinking, Da Vinci suddenly have an idea that came into her head.

"I have an idea!" Da Vinci said with a smile on her face.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou let out a sigh at the situation he was in. Right now, he was in Chaldea's testing room along with Da Vinci, Okita, her altered counterpart, and Musashi were looking at him. "This definitely feels like déjà vu. It's like the day where Da Vinci asked me to show her my noble phantasms. In fact, this is practically the same, but with less people!"

"Hey Shirou! Are you okay there?" Da Vinci said.

"Yeah. I'm fine Da Vinci. Although is this necessary? I mean, you already have data on my noble phantasms, so why am I doing this again?" Shirou replied.

"Because Okita Alter and Musashi wanted to know what Tsumugari Muramasa looks like when it is unleashed!" Da Vinci replied.

Shirou was in disbelief at the answer Da Vinci said. "Really? Is that the reason why you dragged me earlier and forced me to do it?"

"Yes!"

Shirou let out a sigh. "Well...is the room at least able to handle the damage Tsumugari Muramasa can unleash? I don't want to damage Chaldea."

"Relax. I upgraded the room for situations like this," Da Vinci said with a smile on her face as she was confident that the room was ready for something like this.

"Hurry Shirou-kun! I want to see what happens when you use Tsumugari Muramasa!" Musashi said excitedly.

"Yeah. Show it to us now," Okita Alter said.

Okita let out a sigh. "Don't mind them Shirou-san. They're just excited to see you use it."

_"Figures...well, might as well get this over with. Although I'm pretty sure that if Arturia and her counterparts find out about this, I'm going to get scolded for this..."_

Shirou then unsheathed his katana.

_"Let's hope this doesn't end badly..."_

_(Meanwhile...)_

Ritsuka was walking in Chaldea's hallway, minding his own business.

However, his peaceful walk was interrupted as he heard a giant sound nearby. Worried if somebody attacked Chaldea, he then hurried to the source of the sound. "What the heck was that?!" Eventually, he arrived at the source of the sound, which was the testing room.

As he opened the door to see what was going on, what he saw gave him a shock.

The training room was heavily damaged as there was a giant gash on the wall that looked like a slash from a giant sword along with holes on the ground. However, there was no giant sword as he looked around the room to see Shirou, Da Vinci, Okita, her altered counterpart, and Musashi in the room.

For a moment, there was silence between them. Then Ritsuka spoke out.

"So...Shirou, care to explain what just happened?" Ritsuka asked as he was shocked with the scene in front of him.

Shirou sighed. This was going to be one long explanation he was going to have to explain...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So let me get this straight, Okita, Okita Alter, and Musashi wanted to know what kind of attack Tsumugari Muramasa is, which resulted in Da Vinci dragging you to the testing room, resulting in this?" Ritsuka asked as he got the geist of what happened.

"Yes," Shirou replied.

"I see." Ritsuka then turned to Okita, her altered counterpart, and Musashi. "Were you three satisfied with the result?"

"Yes," they said in unison.

"Well, what was it?"

All three of them were silent for a moment before saying their answer.

"It was a simple sword swing."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1/1/21 update: Added a few things because of the release of Muramasa.


	66. The Drunk King of Heroes

_Usually, the King of Heroes doesn't get drunk. No matter how many times he keeps drinking his wine from his treasury or the alcohol from Chaldea's bar, he would never get drunk._

_And he doesn't talk about his problems or his fears as well._

_However, when he gets drunk...that's where things get interesting..._

_As the King of Heroes turns into the King of Drunks..._

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Archer Gilgamesh groaned as he had his head down on the counter. "Hey mongrel...one more glass please..." he moaned with a bit of a slur in his tone of voice.

Moriarty let out a sigh. "Really, King of Heroes? That's your tenth glass today. Normally, I wouldn't be worried about this since we're heroic spirits and all, but even I'm surprised with the amount of alcohol you're taking today."

Gilgamesh moaned again. "Just shut up and give me another glass...mongrel..." he drunkenly said.

"As you wish." Moriarty then went back to the bar's inside countertop and started to make another drink. "Wow. Seeing the King of Heroes like this...quite amusing I must say..." he thought.

Meanwhile, Gilgamesh was putting his head down on the countertop and was moaning about something.

"Damn you...faker...*hiccup*" he moaned.

As he continued laying his head down on the countertop, it was then that a certain servant came into to his room.

Enkidu, his best friend.

"Hm...wonder where Gil could be? From what I heard from the other servants around here, they saw him heading towards the bar. Well, I'm here now, so where could he be?" After a few seconds of looking around, Enkidu found his friend on one of the stools at the bar counter. "Ah. There he is."

And Enkidu then headed towards to where Gilgamesh was. "Hey there Gil," he said to him.

Noticing his best friend's voice, Gilgamesh slowly moved his head from the table and looked at him. "Hm? Oh, hey there Enkidu..." Gilgamesh moaned.

"Hey there Gil. You seem a bit down today."

"You have no idea my friend," Moriarty said from the other side of the counter as he continued making Gilgamesh's drink. "He's been like that for a while now actually."

"Hey there Moriarty!" Enkidu said cheerfully.

"Hey there Enkidu," Moriarty replied.

"So, what do you mean he's been like that for a while now?" Enkidu asked as he was getting back to the conversation.

"Well, it's quite simple. Earlier, I was just cleaning out the bar. Then suddenly, the King of Heroes shows up, looking all grumpy and asked me for a drink," Moriarty replied.

"Really?"

"Yeah. And he's been at it non-stop. In fact, he just finished his tenth glass."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Anyways, here you go King of Heroes, your drink is here," Moriarty said as he handed the King of Heroes his drink, in which he accepted immediately. "And how about you? Will you be drinking tonight?"

Enkidu was about to say what he wanted to drink but was interrupted by Gilgamesh. "He'll have *hiccup* nothing you mongrel..."

Moriarty let out a sigh. "I'm sorry King of Heroes, but your friend needs to drink something here or else he leaves."

"Then *hiccup* he'll have a glass of water then...*hiccup*"

"As you wish."

Enkidu let out a sigh. "You know I'm not a kid anymore."

"I know *hiccup*. It's just that the bar here doesn't have anything thing here that you might like *hiccup*. None of these drinks are worthy for you," Archer Gilgamesh replied with some slurs in his voice.

Enkidu was surprised with his best friend's condition. "Wow. You are wasted. Just how long were you here?"

"Hmm...maybe an hour or so? *Hiccup*" Gilgamesh drunkenly replied.

Enkidu was stunned with his best friend's answer. "Really? You were here for an hour?"

"To be more precise Enkidu, he was here for an hour and thirty minutes," Moriarty said as he handed Enkidu his glass of water. "Here you go."

"Ah. Thank you, Moriarty." Enkidu then grabbed the glass of water and took a sip out of it. "So, why was Gil here for an hour and thirty minutes?"

"Hm...I suppose it has something to do with the keyword, faker. Although I don't know what it means to him. Do you know?" Moriarty replied.

Enkidu let out a sigh as he now knew what he was referring to.

Emiya Shirou.

_"Ah. He must be referring to the servant known as Emiya Shirou. Now that I think about it, why does he hate him to begin with? I know he constantly calls him faker because he's able to do the same thing as Gil, but why does he loathe him so much? Ever since he arrived here, Gil's mood went for the worst, and I don't know why? I mean, when I first met him, he seemed to be a nice guy, so why?"_

"Anyways, after he drank a few drinks, he started moaning about how he wanted revenge against this so-called faker, and that's all I know. Anyways, good luck talking to him. He's been muttering to himself for a while now," Moriarty said.

"I see. Thank you for the explanation," Enkidu said.

"No problem," Moriarty replied.

Enkidu then turned to Gilgamesh, who was drinking his eleventh glass. "So, my friend, why were you here for an hour and thirty minutes?"

For a moment, Gilgamesh was silent.

"Gil?"

"That damn faker..." he moaned.

Enkidu let out a sigh. "You mean Emiya Shirou?"

Upon hearing his full name, Gilgamesh immediately raised his head. "Don't say that name! Never mention that faker's name in front of me! I swear, every time whenever I hear someone say that faker's name, it makes my blood boil!" he moaned.

Enkidu tried to calm down Gilgamesh from his drunken rant. "Calm down Gil. Calm down. You're looking unsightly here."

"Yeah, and it's quite amusing honestly," Moriarty thought.

Gilgamesh then calmed down after hearing his best friend's words. "Sorry, it's just that hearing that name infuriates me! No wait, his entire existence infuriates me to no extent!"

Enkidu let out a huge sigh. "You're still mad at him from that match a while ago?"

"Yes! How dare that faker cut off my arm! Not to mention the fact that he possesses multiple weapons in which I do not even have! Not only that, but one of the weapons he possesses surpasses my greatest treasure, EA! That should not even be possible! How is it that sword the faker possesses surpasses EA?! And the fact that I didn't know about it until now! Can you believe that?!" Gilgamesh ranted.

"Honestly, I'm still surprised hearing that. I mean, a weapon that isn't part of your treasury? That's something new to hear," Enkidu replied.

"I know right?! Not to mention the fact that his swords, which are inferior knock offs of my treasures, where able to break my treasures! That's such bullshit!"

"I know, I know," Enkidu said as he allowed to Gilgamesh to rant out his troubles. "That's the fourth time I heard this..." he thought.

Gilgamesh then took another sip of his drink. "Damn it...why did he have to arrive...thanks to him, my reputation as the strongest servant of Chaldea has been taken away by him...I bet he's laughing in my face right now..."

Enkidu gave Gilgamesh a few pats on his back. "Relax, I don't think he is."

"Anyways, get this. That faker has the nerve to call me a mongrel! Get it?! A mongrel! How dare he call me that word! And in front of people!" Gilgamesh groaned.

Enkidu sheepish laughed. "To be fair, you are one actually, considering what your heritage is..."

"Enkidu! Are you listening?!" Gilgamesh yelled.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm listening."

"Anyways, that's not the end of it! Somehow, that conversation between me and the faker somehow got leaked to everyone here in Chaldea and now I've been teased by everyone here you know!" Gilgamesh moaned as he put his head down. "The insults, the many insults..."

"That's karma there Gil. Karma for calling others mongrels..." Enkidu thought as he took another sip from his glass of water. "Anyways, you got your problems out of you Gil?"

"No...there's the case with that damn blacksmith as well!" Gilgamesh moaned as he now remembered the other person that defied his authority.

Enkidu was confused with what Gilgamesh just said. "Blacksmith? I don't think we have one here."

"We do actually! Inside of that faker's body is the spirit of a blacksmith by the name of Sengo Muramasa who had the nerve to insult me! He even called me an arrogant, self-centered, golden spoiled brat!"

"How do you know though? Did you already meet him before?"

"Yes! Twice! The first time was in that faker's reality marble in which he insulted me, calling me an arrogant, self-centered, golden spoiled brat! And the second time was even worse!"

"How worse?"

Gilgamesh let out a sigh. "That damn blacksmith claimed that I don't even have one of his so-called Muramasa blades in my treasury! As so, I opened Gate of Babylon to prove him wrong! However, to my surprise, nothing came out! Which meant that there is no so-called Muramasa blade in the Gate of Babylon! Can you believe that?! The faker possesses a set of weapons that my treasury doesn't even have?! That's impossible!"

Enkidu let out a tiny chuckle from hearing Gilgamesh's childish rant. "Wow. Looks like both Emiya Shirou and Sengo Muramasa clearly broke the rules..." he thought as he took another sip of his glass of water. "So, what happened next?"

For a moment, Gilgamesh was silent for a moment.

"Gil?"

"That blacksmith...that blacksmith...PUNCHED ME INTO THE CEILING, KNOCKING ME OUT!" Gilgamesh yelled.

Enkidu was surprised at both the outburst and what Gilgamesh just said. "Really? He knocked you out into the ceiling?"

"Yeah! With just one punch, that lowly blacksmith just punched me in the stomach and somehow, sending me into the ceiling!"

"Jeez...that must be one strong punch...and I suppose you attacked first huh?"

"Exactly!"

Enkidu let out a sigh. "Gilgamesh, one of these days you need to stop attacking anyone that calls you out first. Otherwise, you won't make many friends," he said.

Gilgamesh sighed as well. "Honestly Enkidu, you're the only friend that I need. Everyone else besides master is just below you. They're all mongrels," he moaned.

"You know that type of behavior is the exact reason why the King of Knights and her alternate counterparts you have a crush on hates you."

Gilgamesh let out a groan. "You don't have to remind me about that...jeez, why does she hate me so much?! I'm the King of Heroes you know! I have everything in this world!" he moaned.

Enkidu chuckled. "Well Gil, you kept hitting on her many times and kept telling her "Be mine" every day. Of course, she's going to hate you for that."

Gilgamesh didn't say a thing.

"And there's the fact that she and that faker known as Emiya Shirou are together."

Gilgamesh let out a giant moan. "Again, don't say that faker's name! Never mention that faker's full name in front of me never again!" he moaned.

"All right, all right, I won't mention his full name again," Enkidu replied with a sigh.

"Good! Because that name still haunts me to no end! And how did that faker manage to get Saber's affection while I haven't?! That's completely bullshit! I mean, come on! What does that faker have that I don't have?!"

It was then that Moriarty decided to cut into the conversation. "I suppose the servant known as Emiya Shirou lacks the arrogance and ego you have, King of Heroes."

Gilgamesh then turned to Moriarty. "And what do you know, you mongrel?"

"Well, it's quite simple. You see, you are so prideful and arrogant that you constantly look down on most other servants, which would make other servants resent you. Emiya Shirou, on the other hand, is nice to everyone here in Chaldea. I can see why nearly everyone here admires him," Moriarty replied.

"Exactly Gil. And let's not mention the fact the first time you met him, you tried to kill him! And that was when he was on a date with Saber! Quite the poor impression, don't you think?" Enkidu asked as he turned to Moriarty.

"Indeed. Quite barbaric I must say," Moriarty replied.

"Yeah. Even your Caster and younger counterparts think so as well."

"Hey! A faker like him shouldn't be with her! *hiccup* Only I am worthy of her!" Gilgamesh said.

Enkidu let out a sigh. "Gil, I can't believe that I'm saying this, but the way you were acting at the time was like Ishtar when she had a crush on you."

Gilgamesh was stunned at the words Enkidu just said. "What?"

"You heard me. The way you were acting at the time was like Ishtar when she had a crush on you."

Gilgamesh was baffled. "No way."

"Yeah. Trying to kill him when he was on a date with Saber? That's sounds familiar to when Ishtar killed me when she had a crush on you."

After comprehending Enkidu's words for a bit, Gilgamesh realized that he was right. The way he acted on that day...it was a near reenactment of what happened between him, Enkidu, and Ishtar.

And it was so true that it was painful for him to realize it.

Gilgamesh let out a sigh. "Enkidu, what should I do?"

"Listen Gil, I've seen you go through your good days and bad days ever since I met you. Considering that your ego can't be changed since you're too stubborn, there is one piece of advice I can give you."

Gilgamesh turned to Enkidu. "What is it?" he asked.

"Just ignore him."

Gilgamesh was baffled with what Enkidu just said. "Ignore him? That faker?"

"Yeah. I mean, if his existence bothers you, then just ignore it. Isn't it that simple? I mean, you don't have to react to everything that he does you know."

For a moment, Gilgamesh was silent upon hearing Enkidu's answer. Then after a few seconds, he started to place his hand on Enkidu's shoulder.

"You're right my old friend. It's probably better if I ignore him..." he muttered.

Enkidu let out a smile. "See? Now do you feel better?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"Great."

Gilgamesh and Enkidu then started to chat about their daily lives while Moriarty was watching from the sidelines. "Well then, looks like the King of Heroes is not in that state anymore...although it was fun while it lasted..."

After a few more minutes of chatting, Gilgamesh suddenly got out of his seat and started to leave the bar.

"Gil, where are you going?" Enkidu asked.

Gilgamesh let out a drunk smile. "Isn't it obvious, my old friend? We're hitting the karaoke bar next! Now follow me! *hiccup* Hahahahahahahahahahaha!"

And then Gilgamesh left. Enkidu let out a sigh. "Wait up for me!" he said as he began to follow him.

"Well then, the King of Heroes going to a karaoke bar...I wonder how he sings...?" Moriarty thought.


	67. The Many Times Shirou Fell Asleep

_Normally, Shirou doesn't take a nap when he's on work in Chaldea._

_However, when he does..._

_It's quite the sight to see..._

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Arturia and her counterparts were walking down the hallway towards the cafeteria, having their daily lunch as usual made by Shirou.

However, as they arrived over there, they were greeted with an unusual sight.

Which was Shirou sleeping on one of the tables. He was sitting on a chair while he was sleeping, his head was on his arms.

"Hey, Shirou's sleeping," Arturia said.

"Yeah. And right before when lunch time is about to start," Arturia Alter said.

"Should we wake him up?" Arturia Lily asked.

"Nope. Let's just let him sleep for a little longer," Lancer Arturia said.

"Yes. When he feels like waking up, he'll wake up," Lancer Arturia Alter said.

"Exactly. Although it's been a while since we've seen Shirou sleeping somewhere other his room," Ruler Arturia said.

"Yeah. When was the last time Shirou took a nap?" Archer Arturia asked.

"I don't know actually. Honestly, Shirou deserves this nap after the amount of hard work he has done," Rider Arturia Alter said.

"Although he may have chosen the wrong time to take a nap," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Yeah. It's almost lunch time..." Mysterious Heroine said.

"Should I poke him?" Mysterious Heroine X Alter asked.

"No. Don't disturb him," Mysterious Heroine XX replied.

"Yeah. He needs his sleep you know. However, let's go check on him just in case," Caster Arturia said.

Soon, Arturia and her counterparts started walking to where Shirou was. As Arturia and her counterparts looked at the scene and got closer to where Shirou was, they had one thought in mind.

_"Shirou, you look so cute right now..."_

As Arturia and her counterparts were watching Shirou sleeping on the table, it was then that Arturia began ruffling with Shirou's hair. As she did, a few thoughts came into her head.

_"Wow, Shirou's hair is so soft..."_

However, her thoughts were interrupted by Arturia Alter.

"Hey, you can't keep playing with Shirou's hair forever. All of us want a turn too," she said.

"Yeah," Arturia's other counterparts said in unison.

Arturia let out a sigh. "Fine..."

And Arturia and her counterparts proceeded to play with Shirou's hair. Each of them had their turn as well.

Soon, Arturia and her counterparts were done playing with Shirou's hair, and they were all satisfied in the end.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Jeez! Goldie sure knows how to piss me off!" Ishtar yelled.

"Now, now, calm down," Ereshkigal said while trying to calm her down.

"I'm sorry, but she's right you know! Why does he keep calling me useless?! I'm not even that useless to begin with!" Rider Ishtar yelled.

Earlier, Ishtar and her rider counterpart had their usual tussle between each other and Archer Gilgamesh with Ereshkigal, Caster Gilgamesh, and Kid Gilgamesh watching from the sidelines. What happened was that Archer Gilgamesh called Ishtar and her Rider counterpart "a useless goddess," starting a fight between them. Luckily, Caster Gilgamesh and Kid Gilgamesh happened to pass by and helped Ereshkigal separate the three from each other. While they did manage to separate them, both Ishtar, her Rider counterpart, and Archer Gilgamesh were still looking at each other with hate.

Even now, Ishtar and her rider counterpart were still mad at him.

"Curse him...one of these days, I will have my revenge on him!" Ishtar yelled as she raised her fist in anger.

"I agree with you!" Rider Ishtar yelled as well.

Ereshkigal let out a sigh. "I swear, Ishtar, her Rider counterpart, and any version of Gilgamesh is a bad match if they meet each other. They're like water and oil. Maybe their hatred for each other is probably even greater than Archer Gilgamesh's hatred for Emiya-kun..."

As that thought came to pass, Ishtar and her counterpart stopped for moment, surprising Ereshkigal. "What's going on?"

Ishtar then pointed to a certain direction. "Over there."

Ereshkigal then turned to where Ishtar was pointing. As she did, she then caught a sight she hadn't seen for a while.

That sight was Shirou napping on a nearby couch in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms.

"Wow. Emiya-kun napping...that's something I haven't seen for a while," Ereshkigal said.

"Yeah...and in that outfit of his...he's going to catch a cold at this rate..." Ishtar said.

"We're servants though. We don't catch a cold," Rider Ishtar said.

"Doesn't matter. Anyways, let's get a blanket for him. Ereshkigal?"

"On it." Ereshkigal soon left for a few minutes before coming back with a blanket. "This should be enough."

"Good."

Soon, Ereshkigal then placed the blanket on top of Shirou. As she did, she along with Ishtar and her counterpart were satisfied with the result in front of them.

"Hmph. You better treasure this Emiya-kun. This would be considered a gift from a goddess..." Ishtar said.

"Yeah. Consider the work Ereshkigal did for you..." Rider Ishtar said.

Ereshkigal smiled. "Well then, shall we move on then?"

Ishtar and her Rider counterpart nodded in agreement.

"Good."

And Ishtar and her counterparts soon left the room Shirou was in, with a smile on their faces.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Parvati was in one of the hallways of Chaldea, finding a certain servant.

_"Man, where is senpai? Da Vinci wanted me to find him so she can ask him to do one of her tests...jeez, what is she thinking? Dragging senpai into one of her experiments...I swear, I will talk to her about it one of these days..."_

As Parvati was checking where Shirou was, she began checking every room she passed by, ranging from the recreational rooms to the cafeteria to the training room. However, she wasn't successful as Shirou wasn't in any of the places she checked.

Parvati let out a sigh at her search of Shirou. "Senpai, where are you..." she thought as she checked into the technical room. As she did, she came across a sight that she would think she would ever see.

Which was Shirou napping on the ground.

"Senpai, so that's where you are..." she thought as she looked down as Shirou who was napping on the ground along with a toolbox nearby along with some tools as well. As she continued looking at him. familiar scenes came into her mind.

Which were those times she would wake Shirou whenever he would sleep in the shed in Kiritsugu's residence back when he was alive.

_"It's like I'm relieving those days again. Those days where I would wake up senpai whenever he would sleep inside of that shed he would sleep in sometimes whenever he would be up fixing something..."_

As Parvati continued looking at Shirou, a few other servants came by.

"Eh? So that's what he looks like when he sleeps?" a new voice said.

Parvati nearly jumped upon hearing the new voice and turned around to see Kama, BB, Meltlilith, Passionlip, and Kingprotea looking at Shirou.

"Wah?! E-Everyone?! W-When did all of you get here?" Parvati asked.

"Since you were standing there looking at senpai sleeping," BB replied.

"Yeah. And we were wondering with what you were looking at, so we wanted to take a look ourselves," Kama said.

"Exactly. And now we can see why you were standing there for a while," Passionlip said.

"Indeed. I'll admit, it was quite funny to see your reaction," Meltlilith said.

Kingprotea nodded in agreement. "Yeah. It was funny seeing you jump like that."

Parvati blushed.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Illya let out a sigh. "Wow, that was exhausting," she said as she was walking in a hallway along with Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu.

"Yeah. No kidding, I thought that I was going to die over there," Kuro said.

"Me too. Thanks for the save Miyu," Sitonai said.

"No problem Sitonai," Miyu replied. "Anyways, let's go check on onii-chan and see how he's doing."

"Yeah. Wonder what onii-chan is going to make today..." Illya said.

Soon, Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu headed towards the cafeteria. Eventually they arrived over there, hoping to see Shirou over there.

However, when they arrived over there, Shirou wasn't there. Instead, there was Ritsuka and Mashu.

"Eh? Onii-chan isn't here," Illya said.

"That's odd. Usually, he should be around here at this time of day," Kuro said.

"I wonder where he is?" Sitonai asked.

"I don't know. Maybe we should ask master about it," Miyu said.

Soon, Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu headed towards to where Ritsuka and Mashu were. "Hey master."

Ritsuka noticed the voice and turned around to see Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu. "Oh, hey there Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu."

"Master, have you seen onii-chan?" Kuro asked.

"Eh? Shirou-san?" Mashu said.

"Yes. Have you seen him?" Sitonai asked.

"Hm...I remember that he said he was going to his room," Ritsuka said.

"I see. Anyways, thank you!" Illya said.

"You're welcome."

Soon, Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu left the cafeteria and headed towards Shirou's room. As they arrived, Illya knocked on the door.

"Onii-chan, are you in there?" Illya asked.

There was silence.

"Onii-chan?"

The silence was still there. Not wanting to wait anymore, Kuro decided to speak up. "Onii-chan, I'm coming in now!" she said.

There was no response.

"Okay! I'm coming in now!"

Kuro then went into the room with Illya, Sitonai, and Miyu following him. As they went into the room, they saw Shirou on the bed, sleeping.

"Kuro, I think you may need to be quiet now..." Sitonai said.

"Yeah. It looks like we have barged into onii-chan's nap..." Miyu said.

"Seems so..." Kuro said as she examined Shirou's sleeping face. "Anyways, what should we do now that onii-chan is still asleep?"

"Well...we could wait until he wakes up?" Illya said.

For a moment, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu were silent upon hearing Illya's question. Then they all said one answer.

"Yes."

And they began to wait until Shirou wakes up from his nap...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Astraea was heading towards Chaldea's training room, ready to improve herself on her magecraft and fighting skills.

_"All right. Today should be simple. Get some practice on my magecraft while training my skills. I swear, once I'm done with today's training session, that useless goddess and her counterpart won't even have a chance with me! Especially in front of Sherou!"_

Eventually, Astraea arrived at the training room. However, when she arrived, she came across a sight she would have never expected to see.

In the training room was Shirou, who was sleeping on a bench with his back to the wall.

_"S-S-Sherou?! W-What is he doing here?! Hold on a second, master did say that Sherou would come here to train his skills and magecraft, but still though, I didn't expect to meet him here of all places. Especially when he's sleeping...and in that posture..."_

As Astraea examined Shirou's sleeping face, she blushed at how cute he looked when sleeping.

_"H-He looks so adorable when he's sleeping...wait, am I seriously thinking about this right now?! I should be training instead of looking at Sherou's face!"_

However, her thoughts of training were immediately gone upon looking at Shirou's face again.

_"Then again...training could wait..."_

Astraea then sat next to Shirou. As she did, she could feel one of his arms touching hers, which made her head go red a bit. She then took deep breaths to calm herself down from the emotions she was feeling at the moment.

"Calm down me, just calm down. You are just sitting next to Sherou here. There's no reason for you to get worked up on..." she thought.

However, that was then Shirou's head drooped down onto Astraea's head, making her blush immediately and the heat going straight into her head.

_"S-Sherou!"_

And just like that, Astraea's plans of training went down the drain as she remained in that position for a while...

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nero was walking down in one of Chaldea's hallways, minding her own business as she was wondering what to do for today. "Hm...wonder what should I do for today? Spend time with my praetors? Or should I practice on my singing? Or maybe I could go to take a look at some pieces of art that can interest me?" she thought.

As Nero continued walking, she then came across a sight that wondered her to no extent.

Which was Shirou sleeping on a nearby couch in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms. Not only that, but Hakuno and Ritsuka were sleeping on different couches that were nearby from the couch Shirou was sleeping on.

"Wow! My praetors are sleeping! Umu, this is quite the sight to behold! And it seems like both of them were working on something together..." she thought as she looked at the table in the middle between them. On the table was a small contraption that looked like something Da Vinci would make.

After looking at the contraption shortly, Nero resumed her attention at both Shirou and Hakuno. "Still, seeing both of my praetors together like this...this gives me inspiration! Umu! This will make a good painting for me to make!"

Nero then grabbed a nearby piece of paper and pencil and began to sketch out the details of Shirou and Hakuno. "This will be a great masterpiece!" she thought excitedly.

As she was sketching, it was then that her counterparts soon arrived.

"Hm? Saber me?" Caster and Bride Nero said, attracting Saber Nero's attention.

"Hm? Oh! Hey there Caster me! Bride me!" Nero replied with a smile on her face.

"What are you doing? And especially with our praetors?" Caster Nero asked.

Saber Nero let out a smile. "I'm sketching them for a painting I plan to do in the future! Want to join me?"

Both Caster Nero and Bride Nero smiled at Saber Nero's question. "Of course!"

"Great! Now grab a paper and start sketching!"

And Nero and her counterparts began sketching both Shirou, Hakuno, and Ritsuka...

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jeanne D'Arc Alter was grumbling as she was walking down the hallway, remembering an event that made her mad just by reliving it in her memory. Earlier, she had a fight with Arturia Alter over who gets to eat the last burger that was in the cafeteria. Luckily, it ended with no one getting hurt although there were some damage in the cafeteria and to Jeanne D'Arc Alter's ire, Arturia Alter took the last burger from her.

Even now, she can remember the smug grin Arturia Alter pulled off at her while munching on her burger.

"Tch...that woman knows how to make me mad. One of these days I will get my revenge on her! I swear I will burn her with Le Grondement De La Haine!" she thought angrily.

As she continued to walk down the hallway, she then discovered a sight that was unexpected to her.

Which was Emiya Shirou, sitting down on the hallway, napping.

"Hm? What is he doing there? And why is he napping there of all places...?" she thought as she got closer to him. As she got closer to him, she let out a snicker over how casual Shirou was when he was napping. "Wow. For someone who possess an anti-reality noble phantasm and a reality marble, he sure is easygoing when he's sleeping...this gives me an idea..."

Jeanne D'Arc Alter then raised her index finger and started to poke Shirou's cheek to see if he will wake up. He didn't, which Jeanne D'Arc Alter smiled at the results.

She then continued to poke his cheek to see how far she will go.

_"Fufufufufufufu...I can't wait to see the look of that woman's face if she sees this..."_

Meanwhile Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily were watching the scene of Jeanne D'Arc Alter poking Shirou's face.

"Wow. Older me seems to change moods so easily when it comes to Shirou-san," Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said.

Jeanne let out a giggle. "Seems so."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Okita was walking down the hallway, heading towards the training room for her daily training session. "All right, time for train my swordsmanship," she thought. As she arrived at the training room, she saw Shirou, who was kneeling on the ground in seiza form, not moving at all.

_"Shirou-san? What is he doing over there? And why is he kneeling on the ground in seiza form? Maybe I should check on him just in case..."_

Okita then went closer to Shirou to check on him. As she did, she noticed how calm he was when he was in his seiza form. His breathing was natural, and nothing seemed to faze him, piping Okita's curiosity.

_"Wow. Who would have ever known that Shirou-san was this good at meditating...maybe I should give it a try as well. After all, meditating is a part of training as well."_

Soon, Okita began to sit down on the floor in seiza form and began to meditate as well. "Okay. Time to do the same thing Shirou-san is doing right now..." she thought before she closed her eyes and started to breath softly.

Soon, she began to meditate, and that was when that another servant came by.

Okita Alter.

"Hm? What is my counterpart and Shirou doing over there? Are they sleeping? I'm going to check and see..." she thought. Okita Alter then headed towards to where Shirou and Okita was. As she examined Shirou and Okita, she had a thought coming into her head.

_"Hm...this looks interesting...maybe I should give this a try too..."_

Okita Alter then began to sit down on the floor in seiza form, closed her eyes, and started to breath softly. Soon, she began to meditate.

After a few minutes of meditating, she stayed in that position for a while like Shirou and Okita before her.

And like before, another servant came by, and that servant was Musashi.

"Eh? Shirou-kun? Okita-chan? Okita Alter-chan? What are you three doing? Meditating? Or is some kind of new training I never heard of? Whatever it is, it seems to be interesting right now!" Musashi thought excitedly. She then headed towards to where Shirou, Okita, and Okita Alter were. As she did, she examined the three.

"Hey, Shirou-kun? Okita-chan? Okita Alter-chan?" Musashi said, trying to get their attention.

They didn't respond.

"Hm...they didn't seem to respond...this must be a new technique of some sort! I must try it now!" Musashi thought excitedly. Musashi then went into seiza form, closed her eyes, and started to breath softly. After a few minutes of doing so, she was meditating.

Little did they know that Shirou wasn't meditating...rather, he was sleeping from meditating earlier.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fou was walking down the hallway, looking for Shirou. Eventually, Fou sensed his presence and found him napping on one of the couches in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms. As he noticed Shirou sleeping, Fou gently tapped him to see if he was awake.

"Fou?"

Shirou didn't move. Knowing that Shirou is asleep, Fou moved himself on top of Shirou's stomach and stayed there for a while. After a few minutes, Fou began to sleep on top of Shirou's stomach.

"Fouuuuuuu..."

And Fou fell asleep.

_(Meanwhile...)_

"Dang it, where did that cat go? I swear I will pulverize that cat one of these days..." Mordred muttered as she was searching for Fou. Eventually, Mordred got tired of searching for Fou and headed to a nearby recreational room. However, as she arrived, she came across a sigh that amazed her.

Which was Fou sleeping on top of Shirou.

"So that's where that cat went...it went towards where mother was and fell asleep with him...well then, guess my search is over..." she thought as she looked at both Shirou and Fou. As she continued looking at both Shirou and Fou, she let out a smile over how peaceful the two looked when sleeping. "I've never seen mother sleep like this before...and honestly, it looks nice."

While Mordred continued looking at Shirou and Fou, it was then that the rest of the knights along with both Merlin and Proto Merlin joining in.

"Hey Mordred, have you seen Fou?" Gawain asked.

"Shhhhh! Will you be quiet for a moment?!" Mordred said.

"Why? What seems to be the problem?" Lancelot asked.

"Did you find Fou?" Bedivere asked.

"DId Fou do something wrong here?" Gareth asked.

Mordred then pointed at where Shirou and Fou were, which prompted the rest of the knights along with both Merlins looking at Shirou and Fou sleeping. "This."

"Oh. I see. So, you found Queen Shirou sleeping with Fou," Tristan said.

"Exactly, so I don't want any of you to wake them up. Especially you Merlin," she said as she glared at both Merlin and Proto-Merlin.

Merlin let out a sigh. "Relax. We won't. Right, me?"

"Yes," Proto-Merlin replied.

"Good."


	68. Taking Care of Fou

"Bzz! Bzz!"

Shirou moaned as he heard the alarm clock in his room going off. He then rose from his bed and turned to the side to turn off the alarm clock. As he did, he then noticed something.

Fou was sleeping on his bed sheets, snoring softly as he was laying there on top of Shirou's bedsheets.

"Hmm...Fou huh? It's been a few days since Mashu left me in charge of him. Well, guess after getting myself ready, I'll wake him up," Shirou thought as he looked at Fou. Shirou then proceeded to move the bed covers gently and got out of his bed. He then grabbed his katana that he placed in a nearby corner of the wall and proceeded to wake Fou up.

However, before he could do so, he felt something latch onto his leg. As he looked down, he saw the thing that was latching onto his leg was Fou.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "You're quite the quick riser, aren't you Fou?"

"Fou!"

Shirou then kneeled to a level that Fou was comfortable with and gave him his arm. "Want to get on?"

"Fou!" Fou exclaimed happily before he then began to run across Shirou's arm and headed towards on top of Shirou's head. "Fou!"

Shirou let out a sigh. "Why on my head again?" he thought.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking in one of the hallways of Chaldea, heading towards the cafeteria. As he continued walking, he received many stares from the other servants in which they were looking at Fou who happened to be residing on Shirou's head. Shirou let out a sigh. "I'm going to need to get used to this..." he thought.

As he continued walking, it was then that he came across Lancer Cu, who happened to be passing by.

"Hey there kid!" Cu said.

"Hey there Cu," Shirou replied.

Cu let out a grin before noticing Fou that was on his head. "Hey kid, that animal is stuck on your head again."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Yeah. It seems that Fou has taken a liking of me."

Cu chuckled. "Looks like it. So, what's with the deal with him? Isn't he supposed to be with the girl that follows master around?"

"Well...it's a long story..." Shirou said as he began to recall an event that led up to this point.

_(Yesterday...)_

Shirou was in the cafeteria, cleaning the dishes as he was done with his duties in the cafeteria for today. As he was washing the dishes, Mashu then came into the room, holding Fou in her hands.

"Hm? Mashu? Fou?"

"Hey there Shirou-san," Mashu replied as she was coming up to where Shirou is.

"Fou!" Fou said.

"Mashu? What are you doing here? And with Fou?"

"Well...Shirou-san, I have a request to ask for you..."

"Hm? A request?"

"Yes."

"What is it?"

"Well...can you take care of Fou-san for a while?"

Shirou was confused with Mashu's request. "What?"

Mashu was startled for a bit. "I-Is that a no?"

"Well no. I'm just surprised by your request. Anyways, why are you asking me to take care of Fou?"

Mashu let out a small sigh. "Well, tomorrow, me and Senpai will be out on a small singularity and we won't be back for a while."

"I see. But why me though?" Shirou asked.

"Well, Fou seems to like you out of everyone here. And plus, I have a weird feeling if I leave him alone in Chaldea, he'll...well..."

"Kick either Merlin, his female counterpart, or both of them at the same time, correct?" Shirou said as he finished Mashu's sentence.

"Yes..."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Figures. When it comes to Merlin and even his female counterpart, Fou always kicks them in the face for some reason, and I don't know why. Honestly, it's still a mystery to me about why Fou hates Merlin so much that even any counterpart of Merlin angers him..."

"Um, Shirou-san?" Mashu said, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing. Anyways, you want me to take care of Fou for the next few days, correct?" Shirou said.

"Yes."

"Hm...sure. I can take care of him for a few days."

Mashu let out a smile. "Yes! Thank you, Shirou-san!"

"No problem. Now, are there some things I should be wary of?"

"Well, aside from his usual behavior against Merlin and his counterpart, there isn't a pattern he should follow. Although I should suggest one thing."

"What is it?"

"If he ever works up a sweat, ask Da Vinci for his usual shampoo."

Shirou was dumbfounded at that moment.

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's why Fou is with me," Shirou said as he was done explaining the event that led him up to Fou occupying Shirou's head.

"Huh...so basically, while master and the young lady who follows him are out for a few days, you are in charge of taking care of that little animal that's occupying your head, correct?" Cu asked.

"Exactly."

Cu let out a snicker. "Wow. Never thought that I would see you taking care of an animal. And especially like this."

"You're telling me. Although I don't know why Fou always occupy my head..."

"Fou!"

Cu laughed at Fou's answer before stopping shortly. "Anyway, I got to go now. See you later kid."

"Yeah. Bye Cu."

"Fou!"

Soon, Cu left and Shirou along with Fou continued walking down the hallway towards the cafeteria. Eventually, he arrived and saw both EMIYA and EMIYA Alter already there.

And they were already snickering from seeing Fou on top of Shirou's head.

Shirou let out a sigh upon seeing his alternate counterparts' reactions. "Really?"

"Sorry...it's just too hilarious to see you like this..." EMIYA said with a few snickers in his voice.

"Yeah. Especially when there's an animal that's on your head. And that animal happens to be the same one that hates Merlin and his counterpart," EMIYA Alter said while trying to contain his laughter.

Shirou mentally groaned as he got to the kitchen. "You two..."

"Fou!"

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter then let out some laughter after hearing Fou's reaction, causing Shirou to sigh again. "Really?"

"S-Sorry..." they muttered.

Shirou let out a sigh again. "Anyways, let's get today started. Fou, can you get down from my head for a moment?"

"Fou!" Fou said as he soon began to jump down from Shirou's head and landed on a counter. As he did, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter started to cook the meals for the morning. As time passed, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were finished with some of the dishes they had to prepare for everyone.

It was then that Fou caught a whiff of the food Shirou was making and he got closer to the stove he was cooking on. Shirou noticed this and brought his free hand between the stove and Fou, creating a wall between the two.

"Fou, don't come any closer to the stove. You'll get burned if you do so," Shirou said.

"Fou! Fou!" Fou replied as he pointed at the pot that had soup on it.

"Hm? You want a taste of it?"

"Fou!" Fou excitedly replied with eyes that even Shirou couldn't resist.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Sorry Fou, but it's not done yet. Wait until it's done, okay?"

"Fou!" Fou said as he moved back to a safe area on the tabletop.

Eventually, Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were done cooking the meals. As they were done, it was then that Shirou fulfilled his promise with Fou. He then grabbed a small bowl and scooped up a small portion of the soup he made for today and handed it to Fou, which he accepted. Fou then began to drink the soup.

"Well, how is it?" Shirou asked.

"Fou!" Fou said happily.

Shirou let out a smile. "Glad that you like it."

Meanwhile, EMIYA and EMIYA Alter looked at the scene with a confused face and had one thought in mind.

"Since when was my younger self able to communicate with him? And since when was Fou a fan of my younger self's cooking?"

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, what do you want to do next Fou?" Shirou asked as he was walking in one of the hallways of Chaldea with Fou on his head.

"Fou!" Fou said as he pointed to a certain direction. Shirou stopped walking for a moment and looked at the direction Fou was pointing to.

Which was the training room.

"The training room? You want to go over there Fou?"

"Fou!" Fou exclaimed cheerfully.

"All right. Let's go then."

Shirou and Fou then went into the training room. As they arrived, Shirou kneeled to allow Fou to go down safely. Fou then got off from Shirou's head and headed towards a nearby training dummy.

Shirou was surprised at the training dummy that Fou was going up against, in which was quite big for him and was also hanging in the air.

"Hey Fou. Are you sure that you can hit that?" Shirou asked.

"Fou!" Fou replied.

"Are you sure?"

"Fou!"

Shirou let out a sigh as he now knew that Fou was serious in hitting the giant punching bag. "All right then. Go get it."

Then in an instant, much to Shirou's surprise, Fou immediately jumped into the air and kicked the punching bag while screaming, "Die Merlin, Fouuuu!" As Fou kicked the punching bag in the air, he then quickly landed into the ground only to jump into the air again and kicked the punching bag again while screaming, "Die Merlin, Fouuuu!"

Shirou was shocked with how much damage Fou was giving to the punching bag. "Wow. Fou's hatred for Merlin and his female counterpart...it's that huge?" he thought.

"Die Merlin, Fouuuu!" Fou screamed as he continued kicking the punching bag...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey Fou, stop moving!" Shirou said as he was scrubbing Fou.

"Fou!" replied as he was shaking in the water.

Right now, Shirou was washing Fou in his room's bathroom on a small tub after the workout Fou did earlier, which consisted of punching a punching bag many times...while yelling "Die Merlin, Fouuuu!" along with it as well. After Fou was done with his workout, Fou went up to Shirou's head as usual. However, when he did, he smelled something funny coming from Fou and deemed that Fou needs a bath immediately.

Which brings to the event now.

"Hold still Fou!" Shirou said.

"Fou! Fou!" Fou yelled.

Shirou let out a soft sigh as he was scrubbing Fou's back with a specialized shampoo for Fou that Da Vinci made for him a while ago. "Wow. I can't believe that there's a specialized shampoo for Fou here..." he thought as he kept scrubbing Fou's back. Eventually, he was done cleaning Fou's back and was going for Fou's ears. "Okay Fou, I'm going to clean your ears, so don't move. Okay?"

"Fou."

"All right then. Here we go."

Shirou then began to clean Fou's ears with no resistance from him. As he was washing his ears, Shirou realized how fluffy Fou is everywhere. "Wow. Fou is so fluffy everywhere..." Eventually, Shirou was done with cleaning his ears. "All right, now I'm going to wash you off and then dry you off, so don't move. Okay?"

"Fou!"

"Good. Now stand still." Fou then began to pour water on Fou, getting rid of the suds that were on him. Afterwards, he then began to grab a nearby towel and dried him off with it. Shirou then grabbed a hair-dryer and began to dry his hair.

Eventually, Fou's fur was dried.

"All right. That should be good. You're free now Fou."

Upon hearing Shirou's words, Fou immediately started to run around in Shirou's room, allowing Shirou to have a sigh of relief as his task of washing Fou was done. Shirou then went to his bed and laid down over there.

However, as he did, Fou then jumped onto the bed and landed on his stomach. "Fou?" Shirou said.

"Fou..." Fou said before he started to sleep on Shirou's stomach.

Shirou let out a small sigh and a smile.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Thank you for watching over Fou-san Shirou-san!" Mashu said.

"No problem Mashu," Shirou replied.

"I take it that Fou-san hasn't caused you any problems?"

"Nope. He didn't give me any problems these past few days."

"I see. Anyways, thanks for your help Shirou-san!"

"No problem. Although there is one thing I should mention."

"What is it?"

Shirou took a small breath. "I think Fou took a liking to my food."


	69. Irisviel's Scrapbook

Irisviel smiled at the creation that was in front of her, which was her scrapbook of photos that contained m her time in Chaldea along with a digital camera. This would be considered a hobby of hers since she's the type of person who would take photos of anything that would interest her or make her laugh.

And she was proud of it, and her scrapbook of photos as well.

Because of her scrapbook contained precious memories of moments that were well spent in Chaldea, ranging from spending time with Kiritsugu along with her sons and daughters to funny moments with Ritsuka to anything pretty in Chaldea.

Irisviel let out a hum. "Hm! I never knew taking photos was this interesting and amazing! Especially since Da Vinci showed me this when I got bored one day..." she thought as her mind went back to the day where Da Vinci showed her photography along with the digital camera she gave her...

_(A while ago...)_

Da Vinci was in her room, drinking her coffee from her favorite coffee mug in silence while listening to her favorite music. As she continued listening to her music, it was then she heard a few knocks on her door. "Oh my, I wonder who could that be?" She then turned off the stereo in her room and headed towards her door. As she opened her door, it revealed Irisviel at the front door.

"Oh, hi there Irisviel," Da Vinci said with a smile on her face.

"Hey there Da Vinci. Do you mind if I talk to you for a moment?" Irisviel asked.

"Sure. I don't mind. Come on in."

Irisviel then went into Da Vinci's room and took a seat while Da Vinci did the same as well. "So, what brings you here Irisviel? What do you ask from me, the great genius Da Vinci!"

"Well, Da Vinci...I have a question to ask you," Irisviel replied.

"What is it?"

"Well...do you have any hobbies by any chance?"

"Hm? Well of course! I have a ton of them. But why?"

"Well, I need your help with something. You see...what hobby should I take when I'm bored?"

For once in her lifetime, Da Vinci was dumbfounded at the question Irisviel just gave her. "What?"

"You didn't hear me properly? Then I'll say it again, what hobby should I take when I'm bored?"

"Hm? Oh yeah. I'm just surprised at your question for a moment. Anyways, why are you asking me this question?"

"Well, I need a hobby just in case if I get bored alone. I mean, I love spending time with my family, but I want to try out a hobby that I can enjoy. Can you give some advice on this Da Vinci?"

Da Vinci was silent for a moment before saying her answer. "Well...okay. I just need to ask you a simple question so I can see which hobby suits you. Is that okay?"

"Yes!"

"All right then. Let me ask you the question then. What do you cherish the most?"

For a moment, Irisviel gave Da Vinci's question a long thought before saying her answer. "Well, the one thing that I cherish the most is my memories here in Chaldea, especially with my family of course."

"I see...give me a moment to think about a hobby that suits you."

"Okay."

Da Vinci then gathered her thoughts. "Okay. So Irisviel cherishes are her memories here in Chaldea, especially when some of those memories contain her family. Which means...that's it!" she thought. Da Vinci then got out of the chair she was sitting on went to a corner of her workshop to see if she had the item that suited the hobby she was thinking about. "Come on. Where is it?" she thought.

"Um Da Vinci? Are you okay?" Irisviel asked.

"I'm fine Irisviel! Just give me a few more seconds!" Da Vinci replied. "Come on, where is it...aha! There it is!" she thought. She then grabbed the item she was searching for from a pile of creations she made.

And the item she pulled out was a digital camera. As she got it out of the pile, she then went over to Irisviel was and gave it to her. "Here."

Irisviel was confused with the digital camera Da Vinci gave her. "Um Da Vinci, why are you giving me a digital camera?" she asked.

"Well, I figured that photography might be the perfect hobby for you considering that what you cherish are memories, and I think a camera does the job well," Da Vinci replied with a smile.

"I see. But how do I use it? I've heard about it, but I've never used it before."

"Well, it's quite simple! All you have is to turn it on! See the power button over there?"

Irisviel then looked for the power button on the camera. "You mean this one?" she asked as she pointed at the power button.

"Yes. Now turn it on and you will see something."

Irisviel then turned on the digital camera and looked at the tiny screen to see if something will happen. As such, a tiny version of the area she was looking at appeared in the screen. "Wow Da Vinci! I see you in the digital camera!"

"I know! And do you see the giant button on the side?"

"Yes. What about it?" Irisviel asked as she noticed the giant button on the side.

"Well, press it and see."

Following Da Vinci's orders, Irisviel the pressed the giant button. In an instant, the camera took a picture of Da Vinci. As the camera took its image, the picture of Da Vinci was shown, surprising Irisviel.

"Wow! The camera took a picture of you Da Vinci!" Irisviel said excitedly.

"Yeah! That's what the digital camera does. Do you understand now?"

"Yes! Anyways, thanks for the camera Da Vinci! I'll be going now, getting some photos!" Irisviel exclaimed as she soon left Da Vinci's room.

Da Vinci let out a sigh. "Well, that's one problem solved...although I hope it doesn't come back to bite me later..." she thought.

_(Back to the present...)_

_"Thanks to Da Vinci, I now have a hobby that allows me to savor my memories of Chaldea along with the memories I have with my adopted family! Oh, the memories of using this camera..."_

_(A while ago...)_

Irisviel was smiling as she is walking down the hallway, holding the digital camera she got from Da Vinci. "Hmm...wonder what should I take a photo of today?" she thought. As she continued to walk down the hallway, she decided to look at the snowy landscape outside of Chaldea. "Hm...today does look pretty outside, even though it's always snowing in Chaldea...might as well take a photo," she thought.

Irisviel then angled the camera so that it was looking at a mountain. As she got into position, she then took the shot of the mountain in which came out perfectly as she looked at the completed photo. "All right, this photo looks good! Now to see if there is something else to take a photo of..." she thought.

Irisviel continued to walk. As she continued walking, she came across a moment that she couldn't pass up on taking a photo of.

Which was Ritsuka and Mashu sitting on a nearby sofa, sleeping together in one of Chaldea's recreational rooms.

"Oh my, this seems interesting!" she thought. Irisviel then brought out her digital camera and took a photo of the sleeping couple. As she took the photo, she was satisfied with the result that came out and felt a sense of accomplishment inside of her, which was a new feeling for her. "Wow! I never knew taking photographs was so fun!" she thought.

And Irisviel left the room to give them some privacy...

_(Back to the present...)_

_"Well, thanks to everyone here, I have a lot of ideas and moments to use as pictures! Especially when it comes to my family. I never knew Illya-chan was so cute in a photograph! Furthermore, with Shirou's arrival and finding out that there are girls that know and want him makes the hobby even more fun!"_

Irisviel then sat down on a chair.

_"Especially when it comes to the King of Knights and her counterparts..."_

_(Months ago...)_

Irisviel was walking towards Shirou's room, hoping to get his help for something.

However, instead of help, she got a surprise.

"Hey Shirou! Are you busy? Mom needs some help...with something..." Irisviel said as she stopped saying anything upon a sight that would never leave her memory ever.

Which was Lancer Arturia giving Shirou a lap pillow.

"Ah...oh..."

Lancer Arturia placed a finger on her lips. "Shh. Shirou's sleeping right now. Please don't disturb him."

Irisviel smiled upon hearing this and said, "Got it! But first, let me take pictures of this!" She then grabbed a smartphone out of nowhere and took multiple pictures of the event. "See you!" she whispered when she was done and left Shirou's room.

As she walked out of the room, she let out a smile. "So. Shirou's already in that phase...that was interesting! Can't wait to see how it will develop later on..." she thought.

_(Back to the present...)_

"I swear, little Shirou seems to always give me a fun moment to take a photo of...although I wish I could have brought over the digital camera instead of my smartphone...ah well, you win some, you lose some," Irisviel thought as she moved a page of her scrapbook to a page filled with photos of Shirou. "Now then, wonder what photo I should take next? Hm...I've already did so many photos of Illya-chan, Kuro-chan, Sitonai-chan, and Miyu-chan along with Kiritsugu, Shirou and his counterparts, and anything else that interested me...what should I take..." she thought.

Irisviel then looked through her scrapbook, looking to see if there was anything that she hasn't done yet. As she continued looking, she realized something.

She hasn't done a family photo yet, and the thought of it excited her as she explored the idea further.

_"Of course! A family photo! Why haven't I have thought of that before? Oh this will be amazing! I'll just have to gather up all the people that are related to both the Einzbern and Emiya families and gather them up for a family photo! Oh boy, this will be fun!"_

Soon, Irisviel left her room and started to gather the people she needed for her project. As she did, she asked the many people that were related to Shirou in one way or another.

In Illya and her counterpart's case along with Miyu, they agreed to Irisviel's idea.

In Jaguar-man's case, she went along with it as well.

In Arturia and her counterparts' case, they went along with it. Especially when Mordred got herself involved with it as well since she considers Shirou to be her mother.

In Kiritsugu's, EMIYA's, EMIYA Alter's, and Shirou's case, they just went along with it.

Normally, that would be the end.

However, there was a certain blacksmith Irisviel needed to invite, and he was in a special place...

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sengo Muramasa has seen and done many things in his lifetime as a blacksmith, ranging from creating many demonic swords to fighting an undead to swinging at a reality marble and dying as a result to meeting his descendent and living in his body to seeing the Strike Freedom Gundam for the first time to possessing Shirou's body for a limited time.

However, this was something he did not expect.

Because right now, he was grouped up together...with Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Arturia and her counterparts, Mordred, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Jaguar-man, Kiritsugu, and Irisviel with Da Vinci taking the picture. Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter were middle while Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, and Mordred were in front of them. Muramasa, Kiritsugu, Jaguar-man, and Irisviel were behind Shirou, EMIYA, and EMIYA Alter while Arturia, Arturia Alter, Arturia Lily, Lancer Arturia, Lancer Arturia Alter, and Caster Arturia were on the left while Ruler Arturia, Archer Arturia, Rider Arturia Alter, Santa Arturia Alter, Mysterious Heroine X, Mysterious Heroine X Alter, and Mysterious Heroine XX were on the sides of the group. Right now, they were in Shirou's reality marble.

All and all, this was one situation he did not expect himself to be in.

"I can't believe this is happening..." Muramasa whispered as he was behind Shirou.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Well, this is how mom works. Once she gets an idea, she goes through it no matter what happens," he whispered back.

"I can see that. And I suppose that any of those ideas involves practically anyone that is related to you along with yourself?"

"Most of the time, yes."

Muramasa let out a sigh. "I swear, my host has the craziest family in his lifetime..." he thought.

"Hey Shirou! Muramasa! Quit whispering between each other and look at the camera!" Da Vinci yelled.

"Yeah! We want to see the photo of all of us together!" Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, Miyu, Irisviel, and Jaguar-man said.

"Exactly. A family photo means that everyone related to you must be in the photo. Especially you Muramasa," Arturia and her counterparts said.

"So, shut up and look at the camera mother and great, great, great, great, great, great, grandfather," Mordred said.

Shirou and Muramasa quickly stopped whispering to each other and looked at the digital camera Da Vinci was holding.

"All right, let out a big smile and say cheese!" Da Vinci yelled.

Soon, the picture was taken. As Da Vinci was done taking the photo, everyone gathered around her to see how the picture came out. When they looked at it, they were surprised with one thing.

EMIYA and EMIYA Alter let out a smile, causing everyone besides them to look at them.

"What? I can let out a smile too occasionally," EMIYA said.

"Me too," EMIYA Alter said.

Soon, the group dispersed with Shirou talking to Arturia and her counterparts, Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu talking to each other, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, and Kiritsugu watching the entire thing. Meanwhile, Irisviel then decided to have a chat with Muramasa.

"So, Muramasa, what do you think about your first photo with everyone here?" Irisviel asked with a smile on her face.

"Well...it's not bad actually...although..."

"Although what?"

"Next time when you're going to pull off an idea that involves me, ask permission from me before you do it. Okay?"

"Okay!"

And just like that, another photo goes into Irisviel's scrapbook...


	70. The Joys of Gift Giving

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Merry Christmas everyone! Here's the Christmas chapter everyone has been waiting for! Hope you all enjoy it!
> 
> Also, beware of the Padoru...

Christmas in Chaldea is always quite eventful.

For example, there would the yearly Christmas party which would always involve a lot of food, drinks, and Christmas decorations throughout in Chaldea.

And of course, there's the usual gift giving that happens every year where the good servants get presents while the bad ones get coal...

And this year, Shirou was going to have a taste of the gift giving...

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It is now 2:00 am in Chaldea, and everyone is sleeping. Right now, Shirou is sleeping in his room with nothing or nobody bothering him...or so as he thought.

Because as he was sleeping, it was then that he felt someone shaking his arm, slightly waking him up.

"Shirou. Shirou," the person said.

Shirou mumbled for a moment before turning over to the other side of his bed.

The person let out a sigh before resorting to drastic measures to wake him up. In an instant, the person lifted the bed sheets and threw them to the side. Then the person began to pinch Shirou on his cheek, waking him up.

"Shirou."

"Mmmmnnh...who is it..." Shirou mumbled as he was half-awake from the pinching on his face. As he rubbed his eyes, the person turned on the lights, allowing Shirou to get a better view of the person who took the bedsheets from him and pinched him on his cheek.

It was Santa Arturia Alter, and she was holding a giant bag behind her back. She was wearing her high black and red boots with white fur trims, black stockings, and black, white, and red miniskirt dress.

"A-Arturia...?" Shirou mumbled.

"Call me Santa Alter in this case Shirou," Santa Arturia Alter corrected.

"Okay...Santa Alter, what is going on?"

"Isn't it obvious? We're about to deliver presents to all of the good servants and master now."

Shirou was confused with what Santa Alter said. "What?"

"You didn't hear me properly? We're about to deliver presents to all of the good servants and master now. Now get dressed," she said as she handed him a costume out of nowhere.

Which was a reindeer costume.

"Um...Santa Alter, is this a-" Shirou said but was cut off from Santa Alter.

"Yes Shirou. That is a reindeer costume. And considering that you're going to be my reindeer for today, I think this costume is suitable for you now," Santa Alter said.

Shirou was speechless for a moment before continuing. "Reindeer? Me?"

"Exactly."

"And I suppose that you want me to help you deliver the presents to all of the good servants along with master here as well?"

Santa Arturia Alter let out a small smile at how quickly Shirou was able to deduct what was going on. "Exactly. Now come on, we got a bunch of presents to hand out here, and every second counts."

Shirou let out a small sigh. "All right, just let me get dressed in this costume first."

"Okay."

After a few minutes, Shirou was done putting on the reindeer costume. "Okay. Where do we start?" Shirou asked.

Santa Arturia Alter let out a smile. "Follow me," she said as she began to leave Shirou's room. Shirou soon began to follow her. As they came out of Shirou's room, Shirou saw something that he hasn't seen before in Chaldea.

It was a red sleigh. And it looked high tech as well as it was hovering in the air.

"Um...Santa Alter...is that your sleigh by any chance?" Shirou asked as he was in both shock and awe at the sleigh.

"Yes, and its name is Llamrei MK II," Santa Arturia Alter said as she got on the sleigh. "Now get on, we got presents to deliver."

"All right."

And thus, marks the beginning of Shirou's role as Santa Arturia Alter's helper/reindeer...

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, here is the first stop here," Santa Arturia Alter said as she brought her sleigh to a halt. Santa Arturia Alter and Shirou then got off the sleigh and landed at the first room that they were about to drop the gift off.

Which was Lancer Cu's room.

"You got the gift Shirou?" Santa Arturia Alter asked.

"Yes. I got the fishing pole he wanted along with...what seems to be a bunch of good luck charms...that prevents him from dying by unnatural means...?" Shirou replied as he checked the bag for the items Lancer Cu wanted.

"Good. Now all we need to do is to sneak into him room and drop them off. Also, make sure to see if they have any cookies and milk in the room."

Shirou let out a sigh. "I'm not sure if every servant does that..." he muttered.

Soon, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter sneaked into Lancer's room and silently placed Cu's presents down. As they did, Santa Arturia Alter checked his room to see if there was any cookies and milk in the room. Sadly, there was not.

"Looks like there aren't any cookies and milk here," Shirou said.

"I see...anyways, let's carry on. We still got a lot of more presents to deliver," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Right."

And they left Lancer Cu's room. As they got out, they headed towards the sleigh in which Santa Arturia Alter punched in the coordinates for the next room to visit.

"All right. Next stop, Medusa's room," Santa Arturia Alter said.

And they headed off towards Medusa's room.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, remember the drill?" Santa Arturia Alter asked.

"Yes. We sneak into the room and drop the gifts off," Shirou replied.

"And you remember what Medusa's gift is, right?"

"Yes. The newest novels from the market."

"Good. Now let's get in."

Soon, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter went into Medusa's room and dropped the gifts off. As Shirou dropped the gifts off, Medusa said something in her sleep.

"Sakura..." she muttered.

Shirou let out a small smile upon hearing Medusa's voice. "Rider..." he thought.

"Shirou, what are you doing? We got to go now," Santa Arturia Alter whispered.

"Y-Yeah."

And Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter quickly left the room. As they left the room, Santa Arturia Alter asked Shirou a question.

"Shirou, is there something wrong?"

"It's nothing. Just...some memories came into my mind."

"I see...anyways let's go."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou let out a huge sigh as he was carrying a giant punching bag towards Hercules's room. "Wow. This has got to be the heaviest Christmas present I'm carrying now. And it's big too. Well then again, this is Hercules's Christmas present, so it's a no-brainer that this would be it. And the size of it as well fits him too..." he thought.

"Shirou, hurry up before Hercules wakes up," Santa Arturia Alter reminded as she feared if Hercules's wakes up, then he will go on a rampage, which will ruin the surprise of Santa.

"Yeah...but can't we just leave it outside? It's not like anyone is going to take it..."

Santa Arturia Alter then turned to Shirou. "That's what you think. You may not know this, but you have no idea what the bad servants here in Chaldea would do to get presents."

Shirou was surprised at Santa Arturia Alter's words. "Really?"

"Trust me. In all my years as Santa and in Chaldea, I have seen many servants doing anything for presents," Santa Arturia Alter said seriously.

Upon hearing Santa Arturia Alter's tone of voice, Shirou immediately shut up and obeyed her commands without any question.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, here we are. Caster's room," Shirou said as he looked at the front door to Medea's room. As Shirou proceeded to get out of the sleigh, Santa Arturia Alter let out a sigh. "Is there something wrong Santa Alter?"

"Well, no, it's just that...well...Medea's choice of Christmas presents is well...disturbing even to me..." Santa Arturia Alter replied.

Shirou was shocked to hear those words from Arturia Alter's mouth. "Really? How so?"

Santa Arturia Alter took a deep breath before continuing. "Come closer and I'll tell you."

Shirou then got closer to Santa Arturia Alter, allowing her to whisper to Shirou. After a few seconds of whispering, Shirou was shocked at what Santa Arturia Alter just said.

"So, let me get this straight. What Caster wanted for Christmas was a body pillow of Kuzuki-sensei along with a few small-scale figurines of Arturia and her counterparts, including you?" Shirou asked.

"Yes," Santa Arturia Alter replied.

For a moment, Shirou was speechless over what he just recalled and was silent. "Wow, that's something I wish I never heard of."

"Exactly."

For a moment, there was silence between the two until Shirou restarted the conversation.

"So...you don't want to come into that room?" Shirou asked.

"Yes..." Santa Arturia Alter muttered.

And thus, Shirou went into that room alone...

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was confused with the next present that he had to drop off, which belonged to Sasaki Kojirou.

And that present happened to be a personal training simulator where his opponents...are swallows.

_"Okay, why did Assassin ask for something like this? If it's for training, I can understand, but why did he ask specifically for the opponents to be swallows? I know that he made his noble phantasm from killing swallows with his sword, but are they really necessary?"_

"Shirou, is there something wrong?" Santa Arturia Alter asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Oh, it's nothing. I'm just...well, surprised at the gift that we're about to drop off next."

"I can't blame you. In all my years of being Santa, there are some weird presents that some children requested for. Nonetheless, I gave it to them, as it is my duty as Santa."

"I see. Thanks for the explanation Santa Alter," Shirou said with a smile on his face.

"No problem Shirou. Now hurry up, we got to drop off that present."

"As you wish."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right. The next room to visit is...no way," Shirou said as he deadpanned at what he just saw.

Santa Arturia Alter let out a sigh. "Yes Shirou. The next room we're about to visit is Gilgamesh's room."

"Archer, or Caster, or the kid version of him?"

"Archer."

This time, it was Shirou's turn to let out a sigh. "Really, the King of Heroes expects a present from you? After what he did the Fuyuki Grail Wars?"

"I know right? And don't get me started on what he did last year..." Santa Arturia Alter said.

"What did he do?"

"Well, last year I was doing my usual duties as Santa, and I had to drop off a bunch of coal in Gilgamesh's room because of his bad behavior. However, when I got into his room, he wasn't sleeping. Instead, he was waiting for me with the lights on, and do you want to know what he said and did?"

"What?"

"He said that he will claim me as his wife and nearly locked me in his room."

Shirou nearly got mad for a moment before calming down. "Jeez, he's definitely stuck on the naughty list forever..."

"Exactly. Which is why every year that he gets coal for Christmas."

"I can agree with that. Speaking of which, should we drop off the bag of coal at his doorstep instead of going into his room? I have a weird feeling that he might pull of the same thing you told me this year."

Santa Arturia Alter thought about Shirou's idea for a moment and said, "Good idea. Let's do that."

Thus, when Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter stopped at Archer Gilgamesh's room, they just dropped the bag of coals at the doorstep and moved on.

And it was a good idea too, because Gilgamesh was already awake in his room, waiting...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, next up is Tohsaka's room, and I already know what she wants...along with her counterparts too..." Shirou thought as he looked at the present that was for her.

Which was a ton of jewels.

Eventually, they arrived at Ishtar's doorstep. As Shirou procceded to get out of the sleigh and grabbed the present for Ishtar, he noticed that it was quite heavy. "Wow. This present is heavier than I thought..."

"Shirou. What's going on over there?" Santa Arturia Alter asked.

"Oh, nothing. It's just that Ishtar's present is a bit heavier than I thought. I can manage it though," Shirou replied.

"I see. Anyways, let's get in."

Soon, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter went into the room. As they did, it was quite a mess as nearly every part of the room was filled with gems.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "And Tohsaka kept telling me to clean myself up...this is quite ironic, considering that she can't clean her own room..." he thought.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, here we are. Sakura's room," Shirou thought as he got out of the sleigh, holding her present in his hands. Soon, Shirou went into her room along with Santa Arturia Alter and dropped off the present. As he was about to leave, he then noticed a certain picture that was on the countertop.

It was a picture of herself and Ishtar together.

Shirou let out a smile upon seeing the picture of them together. "Sakura..."

"Shirou, is there something wrong?" Santa Arturia Alter whispered to Shirou.

"Huh? Oh no, it's just that...well, there's something in the room that I've never thought I would get to see," Shirou whispered back.

"Really? And what would that be?"

Shirou was silent for a moment before saying his answer. "Two sisters being together."

"I see...anyways, shall we move on?"

"Of course."

And the two left Parvati's room...

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou let out a huge sigh as he was carrying the presents for Illya. "Man. I never knew that Illya was an advocate fan of anime, let alone being the anime a magical girl anime..."

"Shirou. Are you okay over there?" Santa Arturia Alter asked, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Y-Yeah. I never knew that Illya is an advocate fan of anime, let alone the anime being a magical girl anime," Shirou replied.

"I see...anyways, let's move on then. We've got a lot of more presents to deliver."

"Yeah."

And Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter went into Illya's room and dropped off the present. As he did, he came across another sight he thought he would never get to sleep again.

Illya sleeping peacefully.

Shirou let out a smile upon seeing his little sister's sleeping face. "I would never thought I get to see this again..."

"Shirou, is there something wrong?" Santa Arturia Alter asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Nope. I'm just remembering at a good memory..."

Santa Arturia Alter was silent for a moment before saying, "Memories of you and your sister together?"

"Yeah."

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, let me get this straight. The next room we're about to visit is my adoptive parents' room?" Shirou asked.

"Yes."

"And they're living together."

"Yes. Is there a problem with that?"

"Well no. I'm surprised that Chaldea actually allowed an option for rooming, considering that most of the servants here live in their rooms alone."

"To be fair, it was Irisviel's idea that she would share a room with Kiritsugu. And considering how energic she is...well..."

Shirou let out a sigh as he knew where it was going. "Let me guess, master couldn't refuse her?"

"Yes."

"Figures. I know how mom is when it comes to her requests..."

"Me too...anyways, here we are," Santa Arturia Alter said as they arrived at the shared room between Irisviel and Kiritsugu. Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter quietly went into the room and dropped off the gifts for them. For Irisviel, she got a bunch of picture frames so she can see her photos in real life. For Kiritsugu, he got more guns.

As Shirou placed the gifts of the countertop, he looked at Kiritsugu's sleeping face as he was next to Irisviel, and it looked peaceful. Shirou let out a smile upon seeing it.

"Shirou. Let's go."

"Hm? Oh, yeah."

And the two left, with the image of Kiritsugu sleeping peacefully with Irisviel etched into Shirou's mind...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou let out a sigh at the sight in front of her. "Fuji-nee..." he thought as he looked at his caretaker in which she was sleeping with loud snores and in a messy fashion. She was in a lazy position and she the bedsheets were on the side of the bed, nearly flung over. Shirou then grabbed the bedsheets and properly covered her up. "Man, even now, Fuji-nee still hasn't change. Jeez, she's going to catch a cold at this rate..."

"Shirou, is everything all right over there?" Santa Arturia Alter whispered to Shirou.

"Yeah. I was just...fixing something..." Shirou replied.

"Really? What were you fixing?"

Shirou sighed again. "A really old habit from my old caretaker."

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, next stop is Astraea's room," Santa Arturia Alter said as they were heading towards Astraea's room. Eventually, they arrived at Astraea's room, ready to give her present to her. "Shirou."

"On it," Shirou replied as he grabbed the present from the sleigh and got out of the sleigh. "The present for Luvia-san should be a box of jewels, just like Tohsaka."

"Great. Now let's go in."

Soon, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter went into Astraea's room and dropped off the gift. As Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter were Shirou about to leave, they noticed something.

Astraea was sleeping with a stuffed teddy bear that looked like Shirou. In fact, it was even wearing the same outfit as him.

"Sherou..." Astraea muttered.

Shirou was shocked for a moment. "Wow. I didn't know Luvia-san had something like this...probably better if I don't tell Tohsaka and her counterparts about this..." he thought.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Wow. I can't believe that master asked for all of this..." Shirou said as he was carrying multiple presents for Ritsuka. And his presents were multiple boxes of Gundam model kits.

"Hey, master has a hobby too. And it seems that building model kits seems to be his hobby, especially when it comes to a certain franchise that he loves. Plus, he deserves this after all what he did to protect humanity," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"True. In fact, let me tell you something," Shirou said as he put down all of Ritsuka's gifts.

Santa Arturia Alter then turned to Shirou. "What is it?"

"One time, I was testing out a certain mystic code Da Vinci designed earlier, and it was related to the franchise master loved. And do you want to know what happened next?"

"What happened?"

"What happened was that afterwards, Da Vinci told me that master wanted to be a...gundam."

For a moment, Santa Arturia Alter was silent before letting out a small chuckle. "Really, master wanted to be a gundam?"

"Yeah. That's what Da Vinci told me."

"Wow. That's something I've never heard of."

"Me neither. Anyway, we got to go now. We've got a lot of more presents to deliver."

Santa Arturia Alter let out a smirk. "You don't have to remind me."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, here we are. Nero's room," Shirou said.

"Yeah. Anyways, let's go in and hand in her present."

Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter then went into her room and dropped her gift off, which was multiple works of art. Afterwards, they left the room, got on the sleigh, and soon left her doorstep. As they were cruising on Llamrei MK II, Santa Arturia Alter said something.

"This is quite funny."

Shirou was confused with what Santa Arturia Alter said and asked. "What is?"

"The fact that I'm giving a present to Nero, considering that we were rivals before."

Shirou was even more confused. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well earlier, me and Nero had a competition on who would be Santa this year. Of course, I won, and she accepted her loss with good graces."

"I see, but what's so funny about it?"

"Well...I think that it may be the fact that we're both winners and losers in this situation. I won being this year's Santa, but she gets a gift from me."

Shirou thought about Santa Arturia Alter's words for a moment and let out a chuckle. "You're right. That is funny."

"Told you."

"Yeah. By the way, was it the same as her counterparts too?"

"No. Anyway, let's cut the chatter and move on."

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right, Jeanne D'Arc's room..." Shirou said as he and Santa Arturia Alter landed in front of the room. Soon, they got out of the sleigh and headed inside her room. As they did, they dropped her gift off on the countertop, which was a copy of the Bible. They then left the room. As they did, it was then that Shirou said something.

"Wow. That was completely different experience compared to her altered counterpart's room," Shirou said.

"Yeah. That holy maiden at least knows how to clean her room, compared to her counterpart..." Santa Arturia Alter said as her mind went back to the room earlier...

_(A while ago...)_

Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter went into Jeanne D'Arc Alter's room, dropping her present off.

However, there was one small problem.

Her room was messy as it was filled with papers, making it hard for them to drop the gift off.

_(Back to the present...)_

"Honestly, she should clean her room next year," Santa Arturia Alter said.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou smelled the present that was for Okita, and within one whiff, he nearly gagged. "Whoa. That is one smelly medicine. I know that it's supposed to help her deal with her disease, but man, that is quite smelly. Heck, it's even going through the present itself!"

"Shirou, are you okay?" Santa Arturia Alter asked after seeing Shirou's reaction to Okita's present.

"Yeah. It's just that, well, Okita's present has quite the smell."

"I can't blame you. Every year, Okita asks for medicine to ease her disease, and I always bring this medicine to her. After, it is my duty as Santa."

"I see," Shirou said. It was then that they arrived at Okita's room. "Anyways, here we are."

Soon, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter got off the sleigh and handed into Okita's room to drop off her present. As they did, Shirou had one thought in mind.

"Get well Okita. Hope today you will feel better."

Soon, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter left Okita's room. "All right, next stop is her altered counterpart," Santa Arturia Alter said.

Shirou was silent for a moment before asking, "Does she have the same medicine as Okita?"

"No."

Shirou let out a sigh of relief.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, here we are. Musashi's room," Santa Arturia Alter said.

Shirou let out a small sigh as he looked at Musashi's Christmas present, which happened to be a new pair of katanas hand-crafted by Sengo Muramasa himself. "Man, I can't believe Musashi asked for a new pair of swords handcrafted by Muramasa himself...and his reaction as well..."

At that moment, Muramasa's reaction came into Shirou's mind.

"Huh?! Musashi wants two new swords already, even though the ones I gave her aren't broken?! And just because of this holiday known as "Christmas?!" I never heard of a holiday such as that! How greedy is she?!"

Shirou sighed again as he relieved Muramasa's reaction.

"Shirou? Is there something wrong?" Santa Arturia Alter asked.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing. Just...relieving a reaction from Muramasa..." Shirou replied.

"I see. Anyways, let's head in."

Soon, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter headed towards Musashi's room and dropped off the Katanas. As they were about to leave, Shirou had one thought in mind.

"Musashi, hope you enjoy the gift, because Muramasa is going to have a long talk with you later...and possibly me as well..."

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, this is a weird situation," Shirou said as he and Santa Arturia Alter were heading towards their next room...which was EMIYA's room.

"Yeah. The next servant that we're about to give a present to is EMIYA, your counterpart from an alternate timeline," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Yeah. I never would have thought that I would give a present to myself..." Shirou said with a chuckle.

"I know right? Not to mention the fact that despite what he says about him not being you, he still has some of your traits."

"You think so?"

"Yeah. Anyway, you have the present right?"

"Yeah. A new set of cooking tools for him."

"Good, now just put it in the corner and we'll head on."

Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter then went into EMIYA's room, dropped his present off, and went to the sleigh. "Wow. That wasn't weird as I thought," Shirou said as he and Santa Arturia Alter got onto the sleigh.

"Yeah. And I suppose it may be my turn to be in your position."

For a moment, Shirou was confused with what Santa Arturia Alter said before realizing what her words meant.

The next room they were about to meet is Arturia's room.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Wow, this feels like déjà vu. Earlier, we gave a present to your alternate counterpart from another timeline. Now we're doing the same for me," Santa Arturia Alter said as she got off the sleigh.

"I know right?" Shirou asked.

Right now, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter were in front of Arturia's room, ready to hand in her present, which was a stuffed lion plushie.

"Ready?" Shirou asked.

"Obviously. After all, it is my duty as Santa."

"All right then. Let's go."

Soon, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter went into Arturia's room and dropped of the stuffed lion plushie on the table next to her bed, where she was sleeping. As she was sleeping, Shirou let out a smile upon seeing her. "Arturia..." Shirou then got closer to her and gave moved her hair for a bit and gave her a small kiss on the cheek, making Santa Arturia Alter jealous a bit.

"Shirou. Hurry up. We're done here," Santa Arturia Alter said with a bit of jealously in her voice.

"Y-Yeah."

And the two then left the room and got on the sleigh.

"All right. Next up, my counterparts," Santa Arturia Alter said.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Phew. That's the last of them..." Shirou said with a sigh.

"Yes. Looks like this is the end of my duties as Santa..." Santa Arturia Alter replied in agreement.

Right now, Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter were cruising on Llamrei Mk II, heading towards the last room to deliver the present to. Earlier, they made great progress on the gifts as they delivered the gifts to every servant in Chaldea along with the staff as well.

Eventually, the sleigh was getting slower, letting Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter to know that their last stop was getting closer.

As the sleigh stopped, it landed in front of Shirou's room. Shirou and Santa Arturia Alter then got off the sleigh.

"Thanks for the work Shirou. You clearly helped me delivering the presents to everyone here in Chaldea."

"No problem. Anyways, good night." Shirou said as he went into his room, getting ready to go back to sleep.

However, as he was getting on his bed, Santa Arturia Alter followed him to his bed, laid down next to him, and gave him a hug.

"Santa Alter?"

"Shirou, I forgot to mention that there was one more person I need to give a present to, and that person is you," Santa Arturia Alter said.

"Me? But where's the gift?"

"Isn't it obvious? It's me. And don't ask, you deserve this after the amount of work you just did."

Shirou let out a small blush upon hearing Santa Arturia Alter's words. For a moment, there was silence between the two until Shirou continued the conversation. "I see. Well, if that's the case, then I am honored to receive a gift like this."

Santa Arturia Alter let out a smile. "You should be. Anyways, Merry Christmas Shirou."

"Yeah. Merry Christmas Santa Alter," Shirou said before he started to fall asleep.

Santa Arturia Alter soon followed him, and the two fell asleep together...


	71. New Year's Eve Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: HOLY SH*T! THEY DID IT! THEY ACTUALLY DID IT! DELIGHT WORKS ACTUALLY PUT SENGO MURAMASA IN THE GAME! AND DAMN, HE IS SO OP AND COOL! ESPECIALLY IF YOU PAIR HIM UP WITH CASTER ARTURIA!
> 
> NOT ONLY THAT, BUT TSUKIHIME REMAKE AND CARNIVAL PHANTASM 2?! Looks like 2021 started off with a bang!
> 
> Anyways, here's the first new chapter of the new year! Hope you all enjoy it!

Ritsuka was in his room, filing some papers that Da Vinci gave him earlier. "All right, just a few more things to look at, and I'll be done with the paperwork."

As Ritsuka continued looking at the paperwork, he then turned to his alarm clock, which said 2:00 pm and the date said December 30th, 2017.

Upon looking at the date, a few memories came into Ritsuka's mind.

Especially when it came to New Year's Eve...

_(Many years ago...)_

"Mom...when's the soba ready..." Ritsuka moaned.

Ritsuka's mom let out a smile. "Not now sweetie. It will be ready within a few minutes. Until then, please be patient, okay?"

"Yes..."

"Good. Now if you don't mind, can you help your father over there? I think he's stuck setting up the television over there."

"Okay!" Ritsuka replied happily. He then went into the living room where his father was, trying to set up the television on the ground as he was having trouble setting it up. "Dad!"

"Hm? Oh, hey there son. What are you doing here?" Ritsuka's father asked.

"Mom said that you needed some help here with the television," Ritsuka replied.

Ritsuka's dad let out a sigh. "How does she know?" Ritsuka's dad then got off the ground. "Yeah. Can you help me with the wires over there behind the television? I think they're entangled."

"Okay!" Ritsuka then went behind the television and checked to see what was wrong with the wires. As he was able to check to see what was wrong with the wires, he saw that the wires were entangled in many directions, causing the problem that was happening to the television in the room.

Ritsuka then went behind the television and untangled the wires. As he did, the television was working smoothly. "Okay, I think the television should work now dad."

"You sure?"

"Yes. I'm definitely sure."

"All right. Well, here goes nothing..." Ritsuka's father said as he grabbed the nearby remote. As he did, he then pressed the power button on the remote and the television turned on. "All right! It's working now! Thanks son!" he said with a smile on his face.

"No problem dad!" Ritsuka replied excitedly.

Ritsuka's dad let out a sigh of relief before smelling his wife's cooking coming into the room. "Hey, speaking of which, it seems that your mom is done with the soba."

"Really?"

"Yeah. In fact, I can even smell it coming in now."

"Well, that's because it is," Ritsuka's mom said as she brought over three bowls of soba to the dining table. "Dinner's ready!"

Ritsuka and his dad then went over to the dinner table and sat down on the chairs. As they did, Ritsuka smelled the soba and the soup and was in marvel over how good it looked, despite seeing it occasionally. "Wow! It looks so good!" Ritsuka said excitedly as he was about to grab his chopsticks.

However, before he could do so, his mom interrupted him.

"Ah ah. Before we can eat, we need to say our graces first so we can receive a blessing for the new year," Ritsuka's mom said.

"Oh yeah..." Ritsuka said sheepishly.

"Exactly, so let us pray for the upcoming new year first and then we can eat," Ritsuka's dad said.

Soon, Ritsuka and his family began their graces and prays for the upcoming new year. For a moment, everyone was silent as they were thinking of their wishes for the upcoming new year.

"All right. Has everyone done their prayers?" Ritsuka's mom asked.

"Yes," Ritsuka and his dad replied in unison.

"Good. Now then...let's eat!"

Ritsuka and his entire family then went into their bowls of soba happily. As the night went on, all of Ritsuka's family, including himself, were talking about how the entire year went, with laughter and joy.

_(Back to the present...)_

_"That's right, the new year is coming up soon...man, time passes by quickly. Way too quickly I might say. It feels like I was drafted here into Chaldea yesterday. All of those adventures, the many servants that I have summoned, the many friends I made...and the enemies...it feels so real..."_

As Ritsuka continued remembering his past, it was then that he heard a knock on his doorstep. Ritsuka then got out of the chair he was sitting on and went over to the door to see who it was. As he opened the door, it revealed the guest who was on the other side.

His guest was Mashu, and she was carrying a bunch of papers in her hands.

"Hey there senpai," Mashu said.

"Hey there Mashu. What are you doing here? And those papers...?" Ritsuka asked.

"Well, I came here to deliver this to you. Do you mind if I can drop it off in your room for a moment?"

"Sure. I don't mind."

"Great! Thanks, senpai!" Ritsuka then moved aside to allow Mashu to come into his room. As she came into her room, she then dropped the papers off.

"Uh Mashu, may I ask, what are those papers?"

"Well...these papers are more reports that you need to fill out senpai."

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Seriously? More reports? Jeez, just how many reports are there that I need to fill out?! And I'm not even done with my portion yet!"

Mashu sheepishly laughed. "Sorry senpai, but that how it is."

Ritsuka groaned. "Ugh. This feels like high school all over again..." he thought.

Mashu let out a sigh before noticing a photograph on Ritsuka's desk. "Hey senpai. Is that a picture of you and your family?" she asked as she pointed at the photograph.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. That's them. There's me when I was younger, my mom, and my dad," Ritsuka replied as he was out of his thoughts.

"I see. Do you mind if I take a look at it?"

"Sure. I don't mind."

Mashu then grabbed the photo from his desk and looked at it carefully. "So, that's senpai's family...and that's senpai when he was younger...he looks so cute..." she thought as she continued to look at the picture. "Senpai, when was this taken?"

"That? Hm...I would say...about five years ago, before I arrived here." Ritsuka replied as he sat on edge of the bed. Mashu did the same and sat next to him.

"Is that so?" Mashu replied as she continued to look at the photograph.

"Yeah. That photo was also taken during the New Year as well."

"I see...can I ask you a question senpai?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well...do you miss your family?"

Ritsuka let out a small sigh. "I do Mashu. Well, to be fair, it's been a while since I've ever seen them in person. And honestly, it feels like it's been an eternity since I've seen them."

"I see. Just what is your family like senpai?"

"They're a nice family. My dad is a businessman while my mom is a housewife. We usually do stuff together like going on vacations or meeting my grandparents or spending the holidays together."

Mashu let out a smile. "Seems like you have a nice family senpai."

"Yeah. Even now, I still miss them, especially the holiday traditions we would do..."

At that moment, Mashu was interested at the words Ritsuka said. "Holiday traditions? You mean like celebrating Christmas and Halloween?"

"Yes. And the upcoming New Year..."

Mashu was confused for a moment. "New year? There's a holiday tradition for the new year?"

"Yes. At the end of each year, me and my family would eat soba and pray for success and happiness for the new year. Not only that, but sometimes we would have my relatives come over and have a party."

"I see. That sounds fun."

"Yeah. Now that I think about it, today is December 30. Which means that I won't be able to celebrate my usual new year's tradition as how I used to," Ritsuka said with a sigh.

Mashu then turned to Ritsuka and asked, "Does that make you sad senpai?"

"Well...kind of...I guess..." Ritsuka replied.

"I see..."

And the two stayed like that for a while. However, it was then that Shirou passed by and overheard the conversation.

_"New years huh? Well, it is almost the end of the year...and master seems a little depressed...this gives me an idea..."_

And Shirou quickly left the area...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hm? A New Year's Eve party?" Da Vinci asked.

"Yes. I was thinking that tomorrow, we should have a New Year's Eve party," Shirou replied.

"I see. What's the occasion?"

"Well, it's almost the end of the year obviously. And...I overheard master saying that he misses the traditions he would do with his family."

"Huh. And what traditions would he do with his family?"

"From what I heard, he and his family would gather around together and eat the end of the year soba. Not only that, but sometimes, his family would also invite their relatives and they would have a huge party."

"That sounds fun. So why are you asking me about this idea of yours?"

Shirou let out a small sigh before continuing. "Can you make a few posters about the upcoming New Year's Eve party?"

"Well...I can, but" Da Vinci replied.

"But what?"

Da Vinci let out a mischievous smile. "You'll have to pay me back some day."

Shirou gulped at Da Vinci's smiled. "Uh oh. That look in her eyes...and that smile...something tells me she has something planned for me later..." he thought.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For the new few hours, Da Vinci made posters of the upcoming new year's eve party and posted them on the wall, allowing everyone to see them. Not only that, but she also notified the servants of Chaldea that can cook about the party.

As the day passed, more servants were aware of the upcoming new year's eve party, and they were excited.

Especially when some of them have some ideas to spice up the party...

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Phew, this is going to be bigger than I thought..." Shirou thought as he was cooking the dashi broth for the soup to make the year-end's soba. Luckily, he has some help in the form of EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Beni-enma, Tamamo-no Mae, Minamoto no Raikou, and many others in which they were helping him make the bowls of soba. Right now, Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Beni-enma, Tamamo-no Mae, Minamoto no Raikou, and many others were in the kitchen preparing for the upcoming new year's party that was going to happen this evening.

"Hey, is the soup ready?" EMIYA asked.

"Not until a few more minutes," Shirou replied.

EMIYA Alter let out a sigh. "I can't believe I got involved in this..."

"Hey! You're a chef too!" Beni-enma replied as she was making the noodles.

"Exactly. Now we must hurry. We don't want to disappoint everyone here, especially master," Raikou said as she was deep frying shrimp.

"Fine..." EMIYA Alter said as he went back to do his task, which was cutting the vegetables.

As the group continued their work in the kitchen, it was then that a certain servant came into the room.

And that servant was Lancer Cu, who was carrying two bags in his hand.

"Hey there kid!" Lancer Cu said with a smile on his face as he was coming towards the kitchen.

"Hey there Cu. What are you doing here?" Shirou asked.

"Oh, I'm here to drop some things off for the party. I think it'll make the party more interesting," Lancer Cu replied as he put the bags on the countertop. "So, what are you doing?"

"Making the soup for the soba," Shirou replied.

"Soba? Is that good?"

"Yeah."

"Hm...why are the noodles that dark? Did you put some magic on it?" Lancer Cu jokingly asked.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "It's because of the flour. Anyways, is that all you're here? Because I'm a bit busy here."

Lancer Cu let out a small pout. "Tch, you're quite busy when it comes to this huh? Well, I've came to drop of my contribution to the party, so I'll leave you to your work. See you later at the party."

Lancer Cu then left the room. Shirou let out a small sigh. "Well, back to work. Although I'm going to check the contents of the bags Cu brought over later..." he thought.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ritsuka and Mashu were walking down the hallway. As they were walking down the hallway, they noticed that nearly every servant was heading towards the cafeteria. Not only that, but they also noticed the posters that Da Vinci made earlier.

"Uh, senpai, what is going on here?" Mashu asked.

"Well, judging by the posters that we've been seeing earlier...my guess is that they're all going to the cafeteria to celebrate the New Year's Eve," Ritsuka replied.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. And it seems that someone is involved in this, but who?"

"Hm...maybe Merlin? Or his female counterpart? Or Da Vinci?"

"Could be. Anyways, let's get closer to find out."

Soon, Ritsuka and Mashu went towards the cafeteria, hoping to see what was going on. As they got closer to the cafeteria, they heard a bunch of voices coming from the cafeteria.

"Hey! I was saving that fried shrimp for last!"

"Sorry! But you snooze, you lose!"

"I'll admit these noodles are pretty good."

"Hey! Who took my booze?!"

"Aw shut up! Quite being such a hogger and let me enjoy this!"

"The lot of you mongrels!"

Upon hearing what the servants were saying, Ritsuka realized that they were having a new year's party just like the one he and family would do...well, for the most part that is. Ritsuka then ran quickly to the cafeteria.

"Senpai?!" Mashu asked as she started to follow him.

As Ritsuka arrived at the cafeteria, he was surprised at the sight in front of him. Nearly every servant in Chaldea was having a huge party as they were eating bowls of new years' soba. Not only that, but some of the servants were having a blast drinking sake and bottles of alcohol.

All and all, the sight in front of him reminded him of his time with his family.

And it felt familiar to him. So familiar that he was almost about to cry.

"Senpai? Is everything all right?" Mashu asked.

"Nothing. It's just...that...I'm feeling some nostalgia inside of me now," Ritsuka replied as he was wiping his eyes.

"That so? Is it bad?"

"No. It's...a warm feeling that I have never felt for a while. And it feels good actually."

Mashu let out a smile. "Well then, shall we go inside?"

"Sure."

Ritsuka and Mashu went into the cafeteria, greeted by practically everyone here. As they, they saw Shirou, EMIYA, EMIYA Alter, Beni-enma, Tamamo-no Mae, Minamoto no Raikou, and many others at the kitchen. Ritsuka and Mashu then went up to the counter.

"Hey there master. Would you like some new year's soba?" Shirou asked.

"Sure. Mashu?" Ritsuka said.

"Y-Yes! I would like some soba too!" Mashu replied.

Shirou let out a smile. "As you wish."

Shirou then proceeded to make both Ritsuka and Mashu their bowls of soba. As he was doing that, Ritsuka then asked Shirou a question.

"Hey Shirou, who came up with this? Was it Merlin? Or his female counterpart? Or Da Vinci?" Ritsuka asked.

Shirou was silent for a moment before saying his answer. "Actually, it was me master. I'm the one who came up with this idea."

"I see, but how though? Do you celebrate New Years like this when you were alive Shirou-san?" Mashu asked.

"Well yeah...and I just happened to overhear your conversation the other day."

Ritsuka and Mashu blushed at what Shirou just said. "Y-You heard that?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah. Sorry about that master, but I thought that you miss the traditions you and your family would celebrate. So, I did this. Please forgive me."

"N-No problem. Although next time, don't do that please."

"Yes."

Shirou, Ritsuka, and Mashu were silent for a moment before Shirou served Ritsuka and Mashu their bowls of soba. "Here you go. Two bowls of new years' soba for you two. Enjoy," he said as he handed them their bowls.

Ritsuka and Mashu looked down at their bowls and were in awe at how good it looked. "Wow! This looks good Shirou-san!" Mashu said excitedly.

Shirou let out a smile. "Glad that you like it. Now, let's eat it before it gets cold. Okay?"

"Yes!" Ritsuka and Mashu said in unison. Both them grabbed their chopsticks and began to slurp on their soba noodles. As they did, they let out a giant smile over how good it is.

Shirou then let out a sigh and proceeded to leave the kitchen. "Hm? Shirou-san? What are you doing?" Mashu asked.

"I'm going to get some fresh air for a moment. Don't worry, I'll be back in a moment," Shirou replied.

"Okay."

Shirou then left the cafeteria and headed out towards the hallway. As he did, he then looked at the night sky by a window in the hallway, seeing the full moon in the distance. As he was looking at the full moon, a few thoughts came into his mind.

_"New Year's Eve huh? It's been a long time since I've celebrated that holiday...still though, even though today is New Year's Eve, it's hasn't been a full year for me since my arrival in Chaldea..."_

As Shirou continued looking at the full moon, a servant came up behind him.

"Shirou."

Upon hearing his name, Shirou turned around to see Arturia. "Arturia? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I was just wondering where you were," Arturia replied. "So, looking at the night sky?"

"Yeah."

The two were silent for a moment as Shirou and Arturia were looking at the night sky together with Arturia holding Shirou's hand gently.

"So...it's almost the end of the year huh?" Arturia suddenly asked.

"Yeah. Within the next few hours, it will be a new year. And here's the funny thing," Shirou said.

Arturia turned to Shirou. "What is it?"

"I have not been in Chaldea for a year and yet I'm already celebrating New Year's here. I mean, it's quite funny if you think about it."

Arturia thought about Shirou's words and let out a small chuckle. "You're right. That is funny."

"I know right?"

Both Shirou and Arturia laughed for a moment before continuing to look at the night sky. As they continued looking at the night sky, Shirou then said something to Arturia.

"Arturia. There are all kinds of symbolic reasons to eat New Year's soba. And one of them is..."

"What?"

Shirou took a small sigh before continuing. "So that we can be near each other forever."

Arturia slightly blushed for a moment before she looked at Shirou again.

"Well...what I'm trying to say...is..." Shirou stammered.

"You don't have to say anymore Shirou. I know what it means and what you were trying to say," Arturia said with a smile.

"You do?"

"Yeah."

Shirou was silent for a moment before continuing. "Well, in that case...best wishes for next year, Arturia."

"Yeah," Arturia replied with a smile on her face.

As they continued looking at each other, Shirou started to move towards the cafeteria. "Well, looks like I need to get back to the kitchen. Want to come?"

"Sure. However, let me do something first."

"What is it?"

"This."

In an instant, Arturia moved closer to Shirou and kissed him on the lips, surprising Shirou as he did not expect this action from Arturia. For a few seconds, nothing happened as Arturia's lips were touching Shirou's. Gasping for air, Arturia then released Shirou's lips from hers.

"A-Arturia?"

"I know it's a bit too early for this, but happy new year Shirou," Arturia said with a smile on her face.

For a moment, Shirou was stunned from Arturia's actions before letting out a smile.

"Yeah. Happy new year Arturia."

And they kissed again...


	72. Sieg's Arrival In Chaldea

Ritsuka let out a sigh as he was in front of the doorway of the summoning room. "Well, today's the start of the new year, and it also means that today will be the first summoning of the new year! I've saved up my saint quartz and my summoning tickets. I wonder what I will get?" he thought.

The door to the summoning room opened automatically and Ritsuka went inside the room. Upon getting closer to the summoning alter, Ritsuka then dropped the saint quartz. The alter then lit up and Ritsuka was hoping that he would get a good servant.

However, instead of a servant, what appeared in front of him...was mapo tofu...and black keys.

Ritsuka was shocked for a moment. "Seriously?! Mapo tofu?! Black keys?! Again, after all this time?! Okay, calm down Ritsuka. Usually, the first summons are the bad ones, so something good may come out later..." he thought.

However, as time passed, Ritsuka's luck wasn't good at that moment as he kept getting craft essences and no new servants came by. Soon, Ritsuka ran out of saint quartz and was using the summoning tickets.

_"Damn it! Guess it's up to the summoning tickets now!"_

However, to his dismay, nearly all of the summoning tickets he was using came with bad results and what he summoned with them were more craft essences. Right now, Ritsuka was on his last summoning ticket, and he was almost in despair from the earlier results.

_"Tch...I'm on my last summoning ticket...hope this one will summon me a good servant!"_

Ritsuka then used his last summoning ticket, which in an instant, disappeared upon usage. The alter then lit up, then formed into multiple blue orbs. Then the blue orbs started to connect with each other and turned into a ring of blue sparks swirling around. Then the ring split into three and continued to swirl around. As the light faded, it revealed a gold card showing a robed old man wearing a hood with a long beard holding a staff while carrying a book at the same time. The card then disappeared and in its place revealed a teen. The teen looks slender, but hardy at the same time, has dark red eyes, and brown hair. His clothing consists of a black waistcoat, white shirt, black slacks, and a pair of half-boots. He was also carrying a sword on his waist.

"Um...servant... my name is Sieg. Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm just an ordinary homunculus. I may not be particularly powerful, but the Noble Phantasm that's been registered to me might be useful in battle. Use me as you see fit."

Ritsuka was silent for a moment before saying something. "Y-Yeah. Nice to meet you Sieg. Um...not to be rude or anything, but what class servant are you?"

"Hm...I'm not sure..." Sieg replied.

"I see...what skills do you have?"

Sieg was confused for a moment. "Skills? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, I mean something like magecraft or swordsmanship or marksmanship."

"Oh. I can swing a sword if that's what you are talking about."

"I see. Anything else special?"

"Well...I've obtained the heart of Siegfried and made it my own."

Ritsuka was shocked for a moment upon hearing Sieg's words. "Eh? Can you repeat that again?"

"Y-Yeah. I've obtained the heart of Siegfried and made it my own." Sieg repeated.

Ritsuka was silent for a moment while many thoughts came into his head. "He actually obtained the heart of Siegfried, the dragon slayer, and made it his own? But how though? Wait a minute, Siegfried mentioned earlier that there was a wish he managed to achieve on his own, so lending him his heart may be that wish. Still though, lending Sieg his heart...that's unheard of," he thought.

"Um...master, are you all right?" Sieg said, snapping Ritsuka out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah," Ritsuka replied. "Anyways, welcome to Chaldea Sieg."

"Chaldea? What is that?" Sieg asked.

"An organization that protects humanity."

"An organization that protects humanity. You mean like the mage's association?"

"Y-Yeah. Something like that."

"I see. Does it involve a magus family? For example, the Yggdmillennia clan."

"Well yeah. The founder of Chaldea is Marisbury Animusphere, the head of the Animusphere family."

"I see. Is there anything else that I should know about?"

"Well...this may come as a shock for you, but right now, we're in Antarctica," Ritsuka said.

Sieg was confused. "Antarctica? What is that place?"

"Well...I'll put it this way. It's a really, really, really, cold place."

"I see. Anyways, I hope we get along master."

Ritsuka smiled. "I hope so too."

It was then that the door to the summoning room suddenly opened on its own, revealing the person who triggered the automatic doors.

And that person was Shirou, who was carrying a large stack of papers in his hands.

"Hey there master."

"Hey there Shirou. What's with the giant stack of papers that are in your hands right now?"

"Oh this? All of these papers are reports from the Mage's association that you need to fill out later," Shirou said as he let them down.

Ritsuka mentally groaned at the stack of papers Shirou let down. "Really?! That entire stack of papers are something that I need to fill out later?! Just how much papers I need to fill out every day?! This is like high school all over again! Wait, it's even worse!"

Shirou and Sieg noticed the agonizing face that was on Ritsuka's face and asked in unison, "Are you right master?"

"Hm? Ah, it's nothing..." Ritsuka replied.

"I see. Anyways, master, who is this person over there?" Shirou asked as his attention was turned to Sieg.

"Oh him? That person over there is a new servant named Sieg, who is a homunculus who apparently inherited Siegfried's heart, literally."

Shirou was shocked at that moment. "Wow. I did not expect that. A homunculus that inherited Siegfried's heart? That's something unheard of."

"Um master, who is this person over there?" Sieg asked as he looked at Shirou.

"Hm? Oh, this is Emiya Shirou, a servant of Chaldea that was here before."

"I see." Sieg then raised his hand. "Nice to meet you Shirou."

"Y-Yeah. Nice to meet you too Sieg," Shirou replied as he shook his hand.

"Well, looks like these two may get along with each other..." Ritsuka thought as he looked at Shirou and Sieg greeting each other. Then an idea came into his head. "Hey Shirou, do you mind giving Sieg a tour of Chaldea for today?"

"Hm? Sure, I don't mind."

"Great! Sieg?"

"Well, I don't mind as well. Plus, if I'm going to be living here for now on, I might as well get a good look at the place."

Shirou let out a smile. "Well then, shall we move on?"

"Yeah."

And Shirou then left the summoning room with Sieg following him, leaving Ritsuka alone.

"Well then, now that's over...I guess I have to deal with all of this now..." he thought as he looked at the pile of papers and the large amount of craft essences he summoned.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"And over there is the training room, where servants go to that room to train and hone their skills. However, that room isn't limited to servants because master can go into that room as well," Shirou said as he pointed at the training room.

"I see. And that room over there?" Sieg asked as he pointed to a nearby room.

Shirou then turned to the direction to where Sieg was pointing. "Oh. That room over there is one of the recreational rooms in which servants and master can go into that room to relax."

"Wow. That sounds handy."

"It is. Anyways, shall we move on?"

"Yes."

And Shirou and Sieg continued their tour of Chaldea. Earlier, after Shirou and Sieg left the summoning room, they went on a tour throughout Chaldea to get Sieg to know what rooms Chaldea offers and Sieg was amazed with the variety of the rooms Chaldea offered. Not only that, but he was also amazed that such a high-tech building like Chaldea existed in Antarctica.

As Shirou and Sieg continued walking, it was then that they came across a servant that both of them knew.

Mordred Pendragon.

"Hm? Mother! And the homunculus!" she exclaimed as she approached them.

"Hm? Mordred?" Shirou and Sieg said in unison, causing both of them to look at each other.

"You know her?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah. She was a part of a holy grail war I was in. We were on opposite sides at first before we became allies," Sieg replied.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

Mordred finally got to where Shirou and Sieg was. "Hey there homunculus! It's been a while since I last saw you. So, you're finally here in Chaldea huh?"

"Yeah, and I have a name too you know. It's Sieg."

"Whatever. So, I take it that you met mother already."

Sieg was confused for a moment. "Mother?"

Mordred then pointed to Shirou. "Him."

Sieg looked at Shirou with a confused look. "You're Mordred's mother? But how?"

Shirou let out a sigh. "It's a long story..."

"Anyways, since when did you arrive Sieg?" Mordred asked.

"Today actually. Right now, Shirou is taking me on a tour today to see what Chaldea offers," Sieg replied.

"I see. Anyways, I got something to do with master now, so see you later!" Mordred said as she began to walk away before stopping shortly to whisper something into Sieg's ear. "Oh, and Sieg, if you somehow managed to hurt mother, I'll end you and send you back to the Throne of Heroes, got it?" she whispered menacingly.

Sieg nearly shivered at Mordred's words. "Y-Yeah."

Mordred let out a smile, knowing that her message was received. "Great! See you then mother! Sieg!"

And Mordred left, leaving Shirou and Sieg alone.

Sieg was surprised with what just happened. "Wow. I've never seen Mordred like this before..." he thought.

"Sieg, are you all right?" Shirou asked, snapping Sieg out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I'm just surprised with Mordred's behavior. She never acted like this when I first met her."

"I see. Anyways, shall we move on?"

"Yeah."

Shirou and Sieg then continued the tour of Chaldea. As they did, they were met with another familiar face.

Astolfo, one of the Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne.

"Sieg?! Is that you?!" Astolfo exclaimed excitedly, hoping that the reunion wasn't a dream.

Sieg let out a smile. "Yeah. It's me Rider."

In an instant, Astolfo jumped at him and gave him a hug, tackling him to the ground in the process. "Oh Sieg! It's been a while since I last saw you! How are you?" he exclaimed happily.

Sieg let out a chuckle. "I'm fine Rider. Although...can you get off me for a moment?"

"Oops. Ehe, guess I got a bit too excited for a moment..." Astolfo then got off from Sieg, which allowed him to get up from the ground. "Anyways, how are you?"

"I'm fine. How are you?" Sieg replied.

"Oh, me? I've been great! And let me tell you something, Chaldea is quite a fun place! There is so many servants here, some from other eras in history!"

Sieg was amazed with what Astolfo said. "Wow."

"Yeah! In fact, Jeanne is here as well!"

Sieg was speechless. "Really? Jeanne is here?"

"Yeah! Wait, you haven't met her yet?"

"N-No."

"Well then, what are we waiting for! Let's meet her then! I saw her a while ago! You can come too Shirou!" Astolfo then grabbed one of Sieg's arms and dragged him to where Jeanne was.

Shirou let out a sigh and soon followed them.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jeanne D'Arc was in the cafeteria, sipping on a glass of tea. As she drank her tea, it was then that she heard a few voices coming. She turned around to see Astolfo at the entrance with a smile on his face.

"Hey Jeanne! I have a surprise for you!" Astolfo said excitedly.

"A surprise?" Jeanne asked.

"Yeah! And he's right here!" Astolfo said as he pulled Sieg over to Jeanne's view, surprising her immediately upon seeing Sieg at the entrance.

For a moment, there was silence between the two as they were trying to comprehend the reality that was now.

"Sieg...?"

"Jeanne..."

For a moment, nothing happened between the two. Then Jeanne got out from her seat and walked towards to where Sieg was.

"Sieg...is it really you?" Jeanne asked.

Sieg let out a smile. "Yes. It's me Jeanne."

In an instant, Jeanne lunged towards to Sieg and gave him a hug. "Welcome back Sieg!"

Sieg chuckled. "Yeah. I'm back Jeanne, and for good."

The pair then continued to hug while Shirou and Astolfo continued to look at the couple.

"Well then, looks like I made a happy ending for those two!" Astolfo cheered excitedly.

"Seems so, although this raises a lot of questions for me. First of all, how do they know each other?" Shirou asked.

"Well, it's a long story Shirou. You see, a long time ago, me, Sieg, Jeanne, Mordred, and a bunch of other servants were in a grail war. During that war, Jeanne fell in love with Sieg and vice versa as well. However, during the war, they were split apart."

"I see."

"Yeah. In fact, I forgot to mention this earlier, but Sieg became my master during the war."

"Really? How so?"

"Well...he became my master after Mordred cut my former master's head off."

Shirou felt a little disgusted after hearing Astolfo's words. "Jeez, that's...a bit gruesome."

"You can say that again."

As Shirou and Astolfo continued looking at the couple, it was then that a familiar voice came in.

"Oh my, this is quite the view."

Sieg and Jeanne nearly jumped at the voice and broke their hug while Shirou and Astolfo turned around to see who said that.

And the person who said that was Amakusa Shirou Tokisada.

Upon looking at Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, Sieg let out a frown with a small growl in the end. "Amakusa...Shirou...Tokisada!" he muttered as he prepared to draw his sword.

"Whoa there. Easy, I'm not here to fight. Relax," Amakusa Shirou said

Sieg was still not convinced. Shirou let out a sigh upon seeing his reaction. "Wow. It's like my reaction towards Gilgamesh and Kotomine..."

Jeanne put a hand on Sieg's shoulder. "Sieg, calm down. He's not here to hurt us. I can vouch for that."

Reluctantly, Sieg stopped drawing his sword. "Fine. But he tries to do something again, I'll kill him."

Amakusa Shirou let out a sigh. "Well then, looks like I'm not wanted here. Guess I'll take my leave then. See you," he said as he began to leave.

Sieg let out a sigh as soon as Amakusa Shirou was gone. "Jeez, even now, he still gets on my nerves."

"I can see that by your reaction. And I assume he was your enemy in the holy grail war you were in?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah," Sieg replied with a frustrated look on his face.

Shirou let out a sigh. "How about I make something for you to cheer you up? Would you like that?"

Sieg thought about Shirou's offer and said, "Yes. I would like that."

Shirou let out a smile. "All right, just give me a few moments."

Shirou then went into the kitchen while Sieg sat down on a nearby table. Meanwhile, Astolfo and Jeanne watched the interaction with awe on their faces.

"Wow. Shirou calmed Sieg down so easily..." Astolfo said.

"Yeah. Looks like those two may become friends," Jeanne said with a smile on her face.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

"Sieg, while we're in Chaldea, there are some people that I want you to meet," Jeanne said.

"Really? Who?"

Jeanne let out a smile. "You'll see soon."

Sieg and Jeanne continued walking. Eventually, they reached a certain and walked in. As they did, Sieg was given a sight that he did not expect to see.

Which was Jeanne D'Arc Alter and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily, who were doing their own business.

"Um...Jeanne, are they-"

"Yes. They're my little sisters," Jeanne said with a smile on her face.

At that moment, Sieg had one thought on his mind.

_"Wow. She multiplied herself..."_


	73. Shirou's Missing!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I have no idea what went through my mind when I was writing this...

Shirou was walking down one of Chaldea's hallways, minding his own business. However, as he was walking, he came across something that was on the ground.

"Hm? What's that over there?" Shirou thought as he was walking to the object that was on the ground in the distance. As he got closer, he saw what the object was.

It was an envelope, and it had some wax that was shaped and had a design on the wax that sealed the envelope shut.

"Hm? An envelope? What's an envelope doing here? And this wax seal...it looks nothing like any wax seal I've ever seen. Did Da Vinci drop one of her things again? Well, I might as well return it to her..."

However, before he could so, the invitation suddenly lit up, surrounding itself and Shirou in a bright light.

"What the?! What's going on?! What is this light?!"

And in an instant, both Shirou and the envelope were gone, with no trace of them left in sight...

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ritsuka and Mashu were heading towards the cafeteria for lunch. As they arrived however, they heard a few voices coming out of the cafeteria.

"Hey, has anyone seen Emiya-kun?" Ishtar asked as she was drinking a cup of tea.

"Nope. I haven't seen Shirou," Arturia replied as she continued to eat her bowl of rice.

"That's strange. Usually, senpai would be here right now, but for some reason, he isn't," Parvati said.

"Onii-chan, where are you..." Sitonai muttered.

"Sherou, it's rude to keep a lady waiting..." Astraea muttered.

"Shirou, where are you? I'm starving..." Jaguar-man muttered.

"That's odd. Usually, Shirou would be here at this time of day, but he's not for some reason...is he late? Or did he oversleep?" Irisviel said.

Ritsuka overheard the voices in the cafeteria and thought, "That's odd. Shirou isn't here yet. Did he oversleep? Or is Da Vinci hogging him again for her experiments?"

"Senpai. Is there something wrong?" Mashu asked, snapping Ritsuka out of his thoughts.

"Well, it seems that Shirou isn't here at the cafeteria yet," Ritsuka replied.

"Eh? He's not here yet? Even though it's already this late?"

"Yeah. Maybe we should check on them and see."

"Good idea."

The two then headed into the cafeteria. "Hey there everyone," Ritsuka said with a smile on his face, attracting everyone's attention.

Arturia then got out of her seat and said, "Master, where is Shirou?"

"Shirou? I don't know. Why?" Ritsuka replied.

"Well, it's already lunchtime, and Shirou's not here yet. Have you seen him earlier?"

Ritsuka thought about Arturia's question and said, "No. I haven't seen him. He's not here yet?"

"Yeah."

"Well, that's odd. Usually, Shirou-san should be here right now," Mashu said.

"I know right?! Just where is that idiot!?" Ishtar yelled.

"Now, now, just calm down," Parvati said, trying to calm down Ishtar.

"Yeah. Maybe Sherou has some business to finish," Astraea said.

"Still though...it's not like Shirou to be this late..." Jaguar-man said.

"Master, if you find my son, can you tell him to get over here?" Irisviel asked.

"Sure," Ritsuka replied.

"Great! Now hurry up and find onii-chan!" Illya said.

"Y-Yes!" Mashu said. She and Ritsuka then left the cafeteria in a hurry to find Shirou. "Wow, that's the first time I've ever seen Ilya-san so pushy..."

"Yeah. I guess when it comes to her big brother, stuff like that could happen..." Ritsuka said.

"Maybe. Anyways, let's find Shirou-san by walking around and asking the other servants who know him where he is."

"Good idea."

Ritsuka and Mashu then started walking in the hallways to find Shirou. As they did, they also ended up with the first servant they saw nearby that knew Shirou.

Cú Chulainn, Ireland's Spear of Light.

"Hm? Oh, hey there master. Young lady. What are you two doing here?"

"Cú-san. Have you seen Shirou-san around here?" Mashu asked.

"The kid? Why?"

"Well...it's already lunchtime, and he's not in the cafeteria. Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Illya, Astraea, Irisviel, and Jaguar-man wanted me to find him and tell him to go to the cafeteria," Ritsuka replied.

"Oh. Well, I haven't seen the kid around here. Try asking his alternate counterparts. They should at least have a clue where he is because well, they're him."

"I see. Thanks for the advice Cú!" Ritsuka said.

"No problem! By the way, if you see the kid, tell him I want a rematch!"

"Will do!"

Ritsuka and Mashu then went on to find either EMIYA or EMIYA Alter in the hopes of them knowing where Shirou was. Eventually, they found EMIYA, who happened to be walking down by a nearby hallway. "Hey EMIYA!" he yelled.

EMIYA turned around to see Ritsuka and Mashu coming at him. "Master? What are you doing here?"

"EMIYA. Have you seen your younger counterpart around here?"

EMIYA thought about Ritsuka's question and replied, "No. I haven't seen him. Why?"

"Well, it's almost lunchtime, but Shirou-san isn't in the cafeteria now. We asked Cú-san where he is earlier and he told us to find you because you might have a clue of where he is right now considering that...well, he's you," Mashu replied.

EMIYA let out a sigh. "I see. Anyways, like I mentioned earlier, I haven't seen him. You might want to check somewhere else, because right now, I have no clue where he is now. Try asking Da Vinci next and see if he's with her. You know how much Da Vinci likes using him as a guinea pig for her experiments."

Both Ritsuka and Mashu shuddered a bit at the last sentence EMIYA said. "Good idea. Let's try her next Mashu."

"Y-Yes! Thanks for the advice EMIYA-san!" Mashu said.

"No problem."

Ritsuka and Mashu then left for Da Vinci's workshop, leaving EMIYA alone.

_"Well then, looks like I need to go to the cafeteria right now. But seriously, where is my younger self at a time like this?"_

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Da Vinci was in her workshop, inventing a new mystic code that came from her head. "All right! Once I'm done with this, I'll ask either Ritsuka or Shirou to test it out for me!" she thought excitedly. After a few more minutes of tinkering, Da Vinci was done with her invention. "Perfect! Now, all I need is for either Ritsuka or Shirou to help me test it out!" she thought.

As Da Vinci looked at her newly created invention, it was then that she heard a few knocks on her door followed up a certain voice she wanted to hear.

"Da Vinci? It's me, Ritsuka. I need to ask you about something."

Da Vinci let out a smile. "Perfect!" she thought as she went up to the door immediately. As she opened the door, she saw Ritsuka and Mashu in front of her. "So, what do you need to ask me for?"

"Da Vinci, have you seen Shirou-san around here?" Mashu asked.

Da Vinci was confused for a moment. "No. I haven't seen him yet. Why?"

"Well, it's lunch time right now, but Shirou isn't in the cafeteria now," Ritsuka said.

"Really? One of the head chefs of Chaldea isn't at the cafeteria. Has the world gone mad?" Da Vinci jokingly asked.

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "This is no time for jokes Da Vinci. Was Shirou here earlier? EMIYA said that he would be here sometimes."

Da Vinci shook her head in response. "Nope. I haven't seen him. However, I could check Chaldea's security system to see where he is. Would that be okay for you?"

"Y-Yes!" Ritsuka and Mashu said in unison.

Da Vinci let out a smile. "Well then, come on in."

Ritsuka and Mashu then went into Da Vinci's workshop and followed Da Vinci to her desk. As they did, Da Vinci then sat on her chair, pulled out her laptop, and began to access Chaldea's security systems. "All right, let me access the footage so that way we can see where Shirou is."

Ritsuka, Mashu, and Da Vinci looked at the laptop screen and saw all the footage in Chaldea's security system. They checked every camera screen and didn't see Shirou anywhere.

"Well, that's odd, he's not in any of the footage," Da Vinci said.

"Eh?! Is that even possible?!" Mashu asked.

"Well yeah, if he is in his room. Speaking of which, did both of you check earlier?"

"Yeah. We did earlier, and when we checked, he wasn't even there," Ritsuka replied.

"I see. Well, if that's the case, then let me check past footage of today and see what happened to him." Da Vinci then accessed the security's databank and checked on earlier footage that happened today.

As so, all three of them were shocked with the footage of what happened to Shirou.

In which he picked up an envelope...and suddenly disappeared.

"Well...this isn't good..." Ritsuka said as he was baffled with what he just saw."

"Yeah. I guess it's safe to say that Shirou-san is now missing because of what we just saw," Mashu replied in agreement.

"Well then, that explains why you two weren't able to see him earlier...he was suddenly teleported somewhere..." Da Vinci said in disbelief at what she just saw. "And furthermore, what was that envelope? I've never seen that before."

"Me neither. Mashu, have you seen that envelope before?"

"N-No. I have never seen that envelope before senpai," Mashu replied.

"I see...so, what do we do in this case?" Ritsuka asked.

All three of them were silent before Da Vinci said her answer.

"Well...we're going to have to tell them..."

Ritsuka and Mashu sighed in unison at Da Vinci's idea. "I've got a bad feeling about this..." they thought.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

News about Shirou's disappearance were spread in Chaldea, and the results were...chaotic. Just as Ritsuka and Mashu expected.

Because, upon hearing the news of Shirou's disappearance, Arturia and her counterparts went crazy and ordered the Knights of the Round and both Merlins to find Shirou and bring him back here, in which they eagerly agreed. Not only that, but Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, and surprisingly Kiritsugu, EMIYA and his altered counterpart, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc Alter and her santa lily counterpart, Okita and her counterpart, Musashi, Lancer Cu, and Medusa joined the search for Shirou.

And in the process, Chaldea became a giant mess as everyone went to every room, turning them upside down in their search for Shirou.

Right now, a week has passed since Shirou's disappearance and Chaldea was still in chaos. Ritsuka let out a sigh as he was drinking a glass of water in the cafeteria.

"Senpai? Are you all right?" Mashu asked as she sat next to him.

"Y-Yeah. I'm just exhausted now," Ritsuka replied.

"From finding Shirou-san?"

"Exactly. It's been a week since Shirou disappeared from Chaldea, and we have no clue or trace where he is. Right now, Arturia and her counterparts along with the others are searching every singularity Chaldea located now to see if Shirou is in any of them, and Da Vinci is working overtime searching any singularity she can find."

"I see..."

For a moment, Ritsuka and Mashu were silent before a few more people came into the cafeteria.

Which happened to be Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Astraea, Irisviel, Jaguar-man, Kiritsugu, and EMIYA.

"Hey there everyone. Any luck on finding Shirou?" Ritsuka asked.

Everyone shook their heads sideways in response.

"I see..." Ritsuka said with a sigh. Everyone then sat down in defeat. "Damn it, we still can't find a clue where Shirou has gone to...man, I wish that Shirou would appear out of nowhere right now!" Ritsuka thought.

However, at that moment, a portal suddenly appeared in front of them, shocking everyone and making them nearly jump out of their seats. For a second, nobody did anything as they were wondering where the portal came out of and were thinking what the next course of action should be.

But they didn't have to.

Because it was then that a figure came out of the portal.

And that figure was Shirou, who looked tired and beaten up.

"SHIROU?!" Arturia, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, and Ritsuka yelled.

"EMIYA-KUN?!" Ishtar yelled.

"SENPAI?!" Parvati yelled.

"ONII-CHAN?!" Illya yelled

"SHEROU?!" Astraea yelled.

"Shirou-san?!" Mashu said.

"What the hell?!" Kiritsugu and EMIYA yelled.

"Hey there...everyone..." Shirou muttered before he passed out and fell to the ground immediately, causing everyone to head towards to where Shirou was in worry.

"Quick! Someone better take him to Nightingale's office!" Ritsuka yelled.

"I'll do it!" Arturia replied.

"Good! Take him there! Quickly!"

Arturia then gently picked up Shirou and carried him to Nightingale's office...in bridal style, making Ishtar, Parvati, Illya, and Astraea slightly jealous on the side. While everyone else was relieved that Shirou finally returned to Chaldea, he had so many questions that needed to be answered.

After a few minutes, Arturia returned to the cafeteria with relief on her face. "Shirou's going to be fine. Nightingale said that he'll be okay when he gets some sleep."

Everyone let out a sigh of relief upon hearing the news. "Phew. Well, I'm glad that's over," Ishtar said.

"Yeah. Although where was senpai all this time?" Parvati said.

"Yeah. We couldn't find him for a week and suddenly, he appears out of a portal," Illya said.

"I know right? Where did that come from?" Astraea asked.

"I don't know, and I don't care. Shirou's back, and that's that," Jaguar-man said.

"Right. Although he will have a bunch of questions to explain later..." Irisviel said.

Kiritusgu and EMIYA nodded in agreement. "Just where did my younger self go for an entire week..." EMIYA thought.

"Well, Senpai, looks like everything will be normal again," Mashu said.

"Yeah. Although it doesn't explain where Shirou was during this entire week. And the envelope...what was that?" Ritsuka said.

However, it was then that a servant suddenly barged into the room. "Master!" the servant said.

Ritsuka turned around to see Tomoe Gozen, who was panting from the running she had to do. "Oh, hey there Tomoe. What seems to be the problem?"

"Master! Look at this!" Tomoe said as she rushed up towards him with her smartphone.

"Hm? What is it?"

"Remember the Fire Emblem game that was released a while ago?"

"You mean Fire Emblem Warriors? Yeah. Why?"

"Well...a new DLC has been released, and when I checked what it was going to be, you won't believe what I saw."

"What?"

"This!" Tomoe yelled as she showed Ritsuka what she was talking about. As she did, Ritsuka dropped his jaw at the news Tomoe was showing him.

"You...you got to be kidding me..." Ritsuka muttered in disbelief.

"Hm? What is it senpai?" Mashu asked.

"Well...look at this..."

Mashu then looked at the smartphone and in an instant, her jaw dropped too. "Is this...is this even possible?!" she exclaimed in disbelief.

"Somehow it is...and I don't even know how..."

"What are you looking at master?" Arturia asked.

"This," Ritsuka said as he handed the smartphone to Arturia and the others. As they looked at it, they were in disbelief at the piece of the news they were looking at.

"N-No way..." they all muttered.

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Yes. Apparently, Shirou is in Fire Emblem Warriors as a DLC character, along with a quest of his own. That's the reason why we couldn't find him for a week. He was stuck in there."

For a moment, everyone was silent upon hearing Ritsuka's words. Then the entirety of the cafeteria went into chaos.

"HE WAS IN ANOTHER WORLD FOR AN ENTIRE WEEK?! AND HE MANAGED TO BE IN A VIDEO GAME AT THE SAME TIME?!" they all yelled in unison.

And just like that, Ritsuka found out that the world of Fire Emblem is real...and Shirou had the privilege to live in it for a bit.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After Shirou recovered, he answered a lot of questions which involved him telling how he was teleported there, how he fought armies, and how he was sent back to Chaldea.

And when the news were spread about his traveling to another world along with him being in a video game, the results...were mixed.

Arturia told her counterparts the news and they were relieved that he returned safely while shocked over the fact that Shirou somehow was teleported to another world and be in a video game at the same time.

Ishtar told her counterparts the news and they were both relieved that Shirou returned, although Rider Ishtar was a little jealous that she wasn't in a video game.

Parvati told Kama, BB, and her sisters the news and they were relieved. Although Kama didn't care about the video game situation while BB and her sisters were jealous that Shirou got to be in a video game.

Illya told Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu told the news and they were glad that he returned and were in wonder over how he was in a video game. Later, they asked Tomoe if they can play Fire Emblem Warriors as well.

EMIYA told EMIYA Alter the news and he was shocked that his younger counterpart somehow managed to get teleported to another world while getting into a video game at the same time.

Astraea, Jaguar-man, and Irisviel later asked Tomoe to play the game later...just to see Shirou in the game.

Lancer Cu was surprised at Shirou's traveling to another world, the video game, and wanted to know if he can come along the next time something like that happened...along with his counterparts as well.

Medusa was relieved, although she later asked what world Fire Emblem Heroes was.

Upon hearing that the universe Shirou went to had magecraft she didn't hear of; Medea was interested in traveling to that same world.

Hercules didn't care.

Archer Gilgamesh on the other hand...was pissed over the fact that Shirou got himself into a video game before him.

Nero and her counterparts were excited at the new world Shirou explored and the video game he was in.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter said she didn't care...but later, she bought the DLC on her copy of the game on her Nintendo Switch and played it...while not letting Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily find out.

Okita Alter and Musashi were interested in the world Shirou explored and were questioning him while Okita just watched with a sigh on her face.

The Knights of the Round were relieved that their queen has returned...and wanted to know what battles Shirou has got himself into.

Merlin and Proto-Merlin were laughing at the news and asked Tomoe to play the game later.

Waver...was completely dumbfounded over the fact that one of his students managed to teleport to another world...and be in a video game at the same time.

Hakuno nearly flinched upon hearing that Shirou was in a video game.

Sieg was confused and clueless because he had no clue what a video game is.

Arthur was surprised that Shirou did the same thing he did, which was traveling to another universe.

Scathach and her counterpart were amused over the fact that Shirou discovered a world they never heard of before.

Amakusa Shirou, on the other hand, was amused with how Shirou got into a video game.

Jack, Nursery, Paul, and Abigail wanted to play the video game Shirou was in.

Da Vinci was laughing over the fact that Shirou somehow managed to be in a video game...and was even more surprised at how Nintendo managed to come up with that idea.

All and all, things were both normal and crazy after Shirou's return. However, there was one question that still remained.

Who sent that envelope? And how did it appear in Chaldea?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And just like that, I've altered Fire Emblem Warriors...well, in Ritsuka's world that is. Also, I do not own Fire Emblem Warriors. Nintendo does.


	74. Meeting Between Masters

"Master...what is this?" Shirou asked as he looked at the room.

"Well...this seems to be one of Da Vinci's plans..." Ritsuka replied.

"Da Vinci? Are you talking about the woman that claims to be a genius?" Sieg asked.

"Yes."

"Well then, that would explain how all of us are in this room right now...and with that low table over there," Hakuno replied as she looked at the low table in the middle of the room.

Right now, Shirou, Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg were in a special room designed by Da Vinci in which the room looked like a room of a Japanese ryokan. The floor was designed to look like tatami mats, there were tokonoma in some parts of the rooms, there were four chairs behind a shoji, there was a window that allowed everyone to see outside of Chaldea, fusuma, a mini fridge, television, and a bathroom. In the middle of the room was a low table that had a portable stove and a giant hot pot.

And the hot pot has some broth in there.

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Da Vinci, you sure went overboard with this room. There's even a working hot pot there! And with broth as well! Just what are you up to..." he thought.

_(A while ago...)_

Da Vinci was in her room, checking out some servant files on her laptop. As she, she left out some certain ones for future reference and read them exclusively.

And those certain files were about Shirou, Hakuno, Sieg, and Ritsuka.

_"Emiya Shirou. The master of Saber of the Fifth Fuyuki Grail War in his timeline. Sole survivor of The Great Fuyuki Fire. The adopted son of Kiritsugu Emiya, who is also known as the "Magus Killer", the adopted brother of Illyasviel Von Einzbern, and the younger self of EMIYA. His Saber servant was Arturia Pendragon, the King of Knights. His magecraft is Gradiation Air, and he can project noble phantasms that are not a divine construct. However, unlike normal Gradiation Air, Shirou's magecraft has been heavily altered because of his fusion with Sengo Muramasa, which he happened to meet during his travels. His noble phantasm is Tsumugari Muramasa, an anti-reality and anti-divinity noble phantasm that can cut through bonds, fate, causality, and destiny, and slice through the idea of karma itself. It is a recreation of the Kusanagi-no Tsurugi, the sword that came out from the tail of Yamata-no Orochi from the age of gods." Da Vinci thought as she read through Shirou's file._

She then moved onto another file, which was Sieg's file.

_"Sieg. A homunculus created by the Yggdmillennia family as one of their many homunculi suited to various purposes. Became the second master of Astolfo, one of the twelve paladins and the Rider of Black in the Greater Grail War in his timeline after his first master was beheaded by Mordred Pendragon. Afterwords, he engaged in multiple battles during the Greater Grail War and won the war itself. He doesn't know any magecraft, but he knows swordsmanship because his body contained the heart of Siegfried, the dragon slayer. It was given to him when Siegfried willingly gave his heart to him. As a result, he can turn into Siegfried himself. His noble phantasm is Akafiloga Argrise, Incandescent Dragon's Breath・Earth Liquefaction, which involves him turning into a dragon, although he himself doesn't know."_

She then moved onto the third file, which was Hakuno's file.

_"Hakuno Kishinami. An NPC from the Moon Cell, which is a supercomputer on the room from another universe. She was originally human, but because of a disease she was suffering with, she would be cryogenically frozen until treatment became possible. However, due to her world's technological stagnation, no progress was made, and he/she remained in this state for 30 years until she entered the Moon Cell. Became the master of Saber, Caster, and Archer of the Moon Holy Grail War. Her Saber servant was Nero, her Caster Servant was Tamamo No Mae, and her Archer servants were Gilgamesh and Nameless, which according to her words, is apparently an alternate version of EMIYA from her timeline. She won the Moon Holy Grail War and was about to disappear. However, due to and rampant A.I named BB, she was teleported to the far side of the moon before so along with the other masters, restarting the war all over again. Like before, she came out as the last master and won. Her noble phantasm is unknown."_

Finally, she moved onto Ritsuka's file.

_"Fujimaru Ritsuka. The remaining last master of Chaldea. Joined Chaldea because he just happened to see a recruitment flyer at a station, applied and got accepted into the job as a master of Chaldea. Doesn't know any magecraft. After Lev's bombing of Chaldea, he became the last master of Chaldea and went through all seven singularities and the Grand Temple of time to save humanity."_

Da Vinci was finally finished reading Ritsuka's file and had a few thoughts going into her head.

_"Hm, out of the four people I looked at, three of them are masters of a holy grail war of some sort. Not to mention the fact that each of them won their wars. Judging by the looks of this, it seems that they have a bunch of experience in being a master to a servant at least, although their experience varies in some cases...Ritsuka could use some experience from the former masters for any crisis that could happen in the future. Although how should I do this?"_

Da Vinci stretched her arms upwards and let out a sigh. "Man, this is going to be a little harder than I thought. It's not like I could make a room and drag those four people into it like how Irisviel did to her sons back then..." she thought.

At that moment, a thought just came into her head.

_"Or could I?"_

And thus, Da Vinci started to come up a plan that involved Shirou, Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg...

_(Back to the present...)_

"Da Vinci. What are you thinking right now? What were you thinking when you dragged me here into this room? And how did Shirou, Hakuno, and Sieg get involved in this?" Ritsuka thought as he looked at the Japanese-style room. "Anyways, since we're all here, we should sit down at least. Especially since there's a working hot pot in the room."

"Sure," Hakuno said as she sat down on one side of the low table.

"Yeah. Give me a moment to get one of the chairs here," Sieg said as he prepared to grab one of the nearby chairs.

"Ah, you don't have to do that Sieg. You can sit down on the ground here," Ritsuka said as he patted down one side of the low table.

Sieg was slightly confused at what Ritsuka said. "Really? You can sit down on the ground here?"

"In this case, yes."

"I see..." Sieg then proceeded to sit down on the area Ritsuka pointed out. "Wow, I never heard of a tradition that allows you to sit down on the ground...this is quite interesting," he said in awe.

Ritsuka let out a smile before turning to Shirou. "Hey Shirou, are you coming to join us?"

"Just give me a second master, it seems that there are some things in the fridge I need to get out from," Shirou said as he was inspecting the mini-fridge.

"Okay." Ritsuka then sat down on his side of the low table. "So, how did all of you get here?"

Hakuno let out a sigh. "Da Vinci dragged me here."

"I see. How about you Sieg?"

"Same."

"I see. And how about you Shirou?"

"Well, I got dragged here as well, although it wasn't Da Vinci that dragged me here. Rather, it was my mom," Shirou replied as he returned from looking at the mini fridge.

"I see. And for me, Da Vinci dragged me here as well. And I don't know why," Ritsuka said.

As he returned, everyone was surprised when he was carrying packets of meat, seafood, and vegetables.

"Um...Shirou, where did you get that?" Hakuno asked.

"All of this? It was in the mini-fridge over there," Shirou replied.

Ritsuka was surprised at what Shriou just said. "Da Vinci, since when did you have the time to do that? Wait, never mind, I should have expected this from her. After all, crazy is the new normal here," he thought.

"So, I guess we're having hot pot now huh?" Hakuno asked.

"Hot pot? What is that?" Sieg asked.

"It's a dish that involves a simmering pot of soup stock along with some meat, seafood, and vegetables. What we do is that we add in the meat, seafood, and vegetables into the broth and wait until it's cooked," Ritsuka replied.

"I see. Thanks for the explanation master."

Shirou then added in the meat, seafood, and vegetables into the hot pot and then sat down at the remaining side of the low table. For a moment, there was silence in the air as everyone was trying to figure out how to start a conversation.

Then Ritsuka decided to speak out.

"So...I take it that all of you were masters during your worlds' holy grail wars?" he asked.

Shirou, Sieg, and Hakuno nodded in agreement. "Yes. All of us were masters in our worlds' holy grail war," Shirou said with Sieg and Hakuno nodding in agreement.

"I see. So how did the wars turn out for each of you? I want to hear all of your tales."

Shirou, Sieg, and Hakuno looked at each other for a moment. "So...who wants to start first?" Shirou asked.

"Well...how about you Shirou? Since you were here first before me and Sieg, I think it would be a good idea for you to start first," Hakuno replied.

"That sound like a good idea. I want to hear your story about your time as a master first Shirou," Sieg said.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Very well. It all started when I witnessed a fight between the Archer and Lancer of my world's holy grail war."

"You mean Cu and EMIYA?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yes. My world's holy grail war was known as the Fuyuki Holy Grail War. However, I wasn't supposed to see that fight as the entirety of the Fuyuki Holy Grail War was supposed to be in secret. So, under his master's orders, Lancer went after me...and nearly killed me."

Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg were a little surprised at what Shirou just said. "Really, Cu nearly killed you?"

"Yeah. In fact, he stabbed me in the heart. If it hadn't been for Tohsaka, who happened to be there at the time, I would have already died then."

Everyone's mouths dropped at Shirou's statement. "You were stabbed in the heart and still lived? That's impossible!" Sieg said.

"Well, that's what happened. Anyways, afterwards, I went back home...only to find that Cu followed me and tried to kill me again. I barely put up a fight against him and it ended up with both of us in the storage room of my home. At that time, I didn't know that there was a summoning circle in the storage room, so what happened next was that I activated the summoning circle and summoned my servant."

"And that servant happened to be Arturia Pendragon, correct?"

Shirou let out a smile. "Exactly. Afterwards, Arturia and Cu engaged in battle that was short-lived because Cu had to retreat under his master's orders. It was then that Tohsaka happened to be nearby and Arturia nearly attacked her, thinking that she was an intruder. Luckily, I managed to calm her down and explain the situation. Afterwards, we headed towards the church where I was registered as the last master of the Fuyuki Grail War."

"That's where you met Kotomine Kirei, correct?" Hakuno said, remembering what Shirou said about Kirei.

"Yup. And he was creepy now that I think about it. Anyways, after we got out of the church, we ended up meeting the master of Berserker, who happened to be waiting outside."

"Really? Who was it?" Sieg asked.

Shirou was silent for a moment before continuing. "Illyasviel Von Einzbern, my adoptive sister."

Everyone beside Shirou was shocked. "Really? Illya was a master in your world?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yes. And if you were wondering, she became a master because of lies from her grandfather. Anyways, me, Arturia, and Tohsaka engaged her and in the process, I took a blow for Arturia and was injured badly. Luckily, I managed to survive."

Everyone was stunned at what Shirou just said. "Wow, you took a hit from berserker and survived...that's impressive," Hakuno said.

"Yeah. And from what I know, Berserkers hurt hard," Sieg said.

"You can say that again. Anyways, afterwards, me and Arturia went up against Rider and her master, who happened to use my school for a bounded field. During that time, we also found out that Caster was hiding at the Ryuudou Temple, and Arturia came after her. However, she had summoned assassin to guard the temple, and it was a tough fight. Because of that, me and Arturia went through a training regime."

"Wow."

"Yeah. Anyways, two days later, me and Arturia encountered Rider and her master again at my school, and things were a bit different as we nearly beat them. However, Rider and her master created an explosion and escaped. We then chased after them and finally, we beat them. However, that was when we faced a problem."

"What problem was that?" Ritsuka asked.

"Arturia used up almost all of her magical power and was in danger of disappearing."

"Oh my, that can't be good," Sieg said.

"Yeah. To make matters even worse, Illya kidnapped me when I was out one day and took me to her castle. Luckily, with Arturia's, Tohsaka's, and Archer's help, I was able to break out over there, but Archer had to stay behind to fight Berserker. Worse, Arturia was about to disappear."

Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg looked at Shirou with wide eyes. "What did you do next Shirou?" Sieg asked.

"Well, in order to replenish Arturia's low magical energy, I had to...well, give her mana..." Shirou replied. "How though?" Sieg asked. Shirou let out a blush. "It's something...you don't want to know..." Ritsuka, Sieg, and Hakuno were confused with what Shirou said, but still listened. "I see. She got better though, did she?" Hakuno asked. 

"Yeah. Afterwards, me, Arturia, and Tohsaka went up against Illya and Berserker. During the battle, I managed to project Caliburn."

"Caliburn? The Sword of Selection? You projected that long-lost noble phantasm?" Ritsuka asked in amazement.

"Yes. And that was my first projection too. With that, me and Arturia were able to defeat Berserker," Shirou said with a smile on his face. "Anyways, what came after Berserker's defeat was that we went up against Caster and Assassin again. However, it was then that we received a nasty surprise in the form of the King of Heroes butting in."

Hakuno let out a sigh. "Really? He barged in? Well then again, that's just like him."

"Yeah, and it gets even worse. The thing is, Arturia and the King of Heroes already met before in the previous Fuyuki Holy Grail War before the recent one and wanted to claim her as his own."

Ritsuka, Sieg, and even Hakuno felt a little disgusted upon hearing Shirou's words. "What the...that's creepy," Sieg said.

"I agree," Hakuno said.

"Me too," Ritsuka said.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Anyways, that wasn't the only time we would meet. The next day, he tried to kill me because me and Arturia were on a date."

At that moment, Ritsuka, Sieg, and even Hakuno were outraged at Gilgamesh's actions. "What?! He tried to kill you because you were on a date with Arturia?!" Ritsuka yelled.

"Yes."

"Okay. For someone who has the title, 'King of Heroes,' that was an unheroic thing to do," Sieg said.

"Exactly. Now I'm considering putting him on a restraining order," Hakuno said.

Shirou and Ritsuka nearly shuddered at Hakuno's words. "A-Anyways, back to the story here. During the King of Heroes' attempt of killing me, it was then that I discovered that Avalon was in my body that entire time."

Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg were surprised. "Avalon? The sheath of Excalibur?" Ritsuka said.

"Yeah."

"It was implanted in you?" Hakuno asked.

"Yes."

"Since when?" Sieg asked.

"Well...that's another story to say for another time. Anyways, me and Arturia would eventually go up against Gilgamesh and Kirei in which Kirei was the master of Gilgamesh. Afterwards, we would destroy the holy grail itself."

Ritsuka, Sieg, and Hakuno had their eyes pop out. "What?! You and Arturia had to destroy the holy grail?!" Ritsuka yelled.

"Yeah."

"But why? Didn't you want a wish from the grail itself?" Hakuno asked.

"Well, here's the thing. Apparently, the grail was tainted because during the third Fuyuki Grail War, the Einzberns summoned an evil god that tainted the grail upon defeat. Not only that, but the grail couldn't even grant a wish."

Sieg was surprised. "Really? The grail was tainted in your world?"

"Yeah. Why? Is it not tainted in your world?"

"No."

"I see. Anyways, that's the story of my time as a master."

After listening to Shirou's story, Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg were amazed with what Shirou went through during his time as a master.

"Wow. To think that Shirou went through all of that...that's amazing..."

"Ah. Looks like the beef and vegetables are done cooking now. Would anyone want some?" Shirou asked, snapping everyone else out of their thoughts.

"Ah. Y-Yeah."

"Me too."

"Same."

Soon, everyone started to grab their bowls and placed the beef, seafood, and vegetables in them. As they did, they started to eat their portions of the hot pot that was in front of them. Upon eating their portions, they realized that the hot pot is good.

"Wow. This hot pot is tasty," Sieg said. "And to think that it cooks the food in front of you...that's amazing."

"You never had hot pot before Sieg?" Ritsuka asked.

"No. This is my first time trying it out."

"I see. Well, next time when you visit the cafeteria, I'll let you try out every dish we have over there. Would you like that?"

"Sure. I don't mind."

"Great. Now, that Shirou's done with their story, who's up next?" Ritsuka asked as he continued eating.

"Well, guess I can go up next. Do you mind Hakuno?" Sieg asked.

"No. I don't mind," Hakuno replied.

"Very well then. My story started out when I was escaping from the Yggdmillennia family, because in case if some of you didn't know, I'm a homunculus."

Shirou and Hakuno were surprised a bit. "You're a homunculus?" they asked.

"Yes. Anyways, I ran away from the test tube I was in after hearing that Caster of Black was planning to use me for his golems. I didn't want to die, so I broke out of my test tube and ran away. Afterwards, I wandered aimlessly in the Yggdmillennia castle, trying to find help. It was then that I met Astolfo, the Rider of Black. Afterwards, he, along with Chiron, who was the Archer of Black, hid me from the Yggdmillennia and helped me to live. However, it turned out that I didn't had that much long to live."

"Why?" Hakuno and Ritsuka asked.

"It's because you had a short lifespan, right?" Shirou said as he remembered his adoptive sister's condition was the same as Sieg's.

"Correct Shirou. A homunculus doesn't have a long lifespan to begin with. Anyways, I asked Astolfo to save me, so what he did was that he took me and ran away into the forest. However, we were followed by Saber of Black and his master. I had to fight against Saber of Black's master and got knocked out in the process. However, what happened next completely shocked me."

Shirou and Hakuno looked at him. "What?"

Sieg let out a small breath before continuing. "Saber of Black gave me his heart."

Shirou and Hakuno were baffled. "What?! Are you serious?!" they exclaimed.

"Yeah. Saber of Black gave me his heart, which allowed to me have a regular lifespan. Are both of you surprised?"

"Yes. I never heard of a heroic spirit transferring a heart to another person," Shirou said.

"Me neither. That is something unheard of, even in the Moon Cell," Hakuno said.

"Yeah. Anyways, after Saber of Black transplanted his heart into my body, I woke up and saw Jeanne D'Arc in front of me...along the entirety of the Yggdmillenia family. Luckly, things didn't end up in a fight as Jeanne was able to convince them to go away. Afterwards, I stayed at an old man's house shortly before returning to the war. After I entered the war, I immediately had a fight with Mordred, who was the Saber of Red. However, it was interrupted because Berserker of Red interfered. Furthermore, we had news about Amakusa Shirou's theft of the greater grail and the fight had to be put off. Shortly after, I became Astolfo's second master after his first master was...well, beheaded by Mordred."

Shirou nearly shuddered at Mordred's actions. "Jeez Mordred..." he thought.

"Is that how you became a master?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yes."

"Jeez. That was a bit gruesome, I might say," Hakuno said.

Sieg let out a sigh. "Yeah. Shortly after, Caster of Red unleashed his noble phantasm, which was a giant golem on all of us. It took me, Jeanne, Mordred, Astolfo, Chiron, and more of my kind to take him out along with the golem."

Everyone was interested in Sieg's story. "So, what happened next?" Shirou asked.

"What came afterwards the decisive battle against Amakusa Shirou. While he and his allies were on his servant's noble phantasm, me, Jeanne, Mordred, Astolfo, and Chiron led a strike against him and his allies. It wasn't easy though. There were many servants that we had to go up against, and Amakusa Shirou was no pushover either. But in the end, we won."

"I see. What did you do with the grail? Did you make a wish?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah. It was to seal the grail to the other side of the reverse world."

At that moment, everyone was interested in Sieg's wish. "Why did you seal the grail?" Ritsuka asked.

"In order to not let anyone with bad intentions get their hands on it. Is there something wrong with that?"

"Well, not actually. I'm just wondering. That is all."

"I see. Anyways, Hakuno, do you mind telling your story?"

"Okay. My story started when I lost my memories in the Moon Cell. At the time, I did not know who I was and just assumed the life of a normal high school student. However, one day I noticed that two of my classmates were heading towards a secret doorway."

"And what happened next?" Sieg asked.

"Well, me and my two classmates had to fight each other to the death. During the match, I was close to death and at that moment, I managed to summon my servants."

Shirou, Ritsuka, and Sieg were surprised at Hakuno's words. "Servants?" they said.

"Yes. I summoned Nero, Tamamo no Mae, and Nameless."

Ritsuka and Sieg were confused at the mentioning of Nameless. "Nameless? Who's that?" they asked.

"Nameless is...well, EMIYA from an alternate universe. Anyways, after I summoned my servants, that marked the beginning of the Moon Cell Grail War, where 128 masters would fight each other."

Shirou, Ritsuka, and Sieg were shocked at the number of masters Hakuno mentioned. "128 masters?! That many?!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Yes. However, I did not have to fight all of them. Anyways, near the end of the Moon Cell Grail War, I ended up reaching the core of the Moon Cell and met Twice H. Pieceman, who wanted to use the Moon Cell to wish for the advancement of the human race through war. I refused and fought against his servant, saver."

Shirou, Ritsuka, and Sieg were confused at that moment. "Saver? Is there a servant class like that?" Ritsuka asked.

"Apparently so. Anyways, after defeating Twice H. Pieceman and his servant, I used the moon cell to find out what I am before passing it on to my friends before disappearing. However, that wasn't the end though."

"What do you mean by that?" Shirou asked.

"Well, before I disappeared, I suddenly got teleported to the far side of the moon in a place called the Sakura Labyrinth, created by BB. What happened was that she brought over various Masters and Servants from the Moon Cell Holy Grail War on the Near Side. And then BB decided to restart the entire war again."

"So, you had to join the war again?" Sieg asked.

"Yes. And met all of my previous servants...along with Gilgamesh."

Shirou let out a small groan upon hearing Gilgamesh's name. "Jeez, I hope he wasn't such an asshole over there."

Hakuno let out a sigh. "Well, sadly, he was back then. Anyways, as usual, the number of masters dwindled until I was the last one. When that happened, we went up against BB and defeated her. Normally, that would have been the end, but that was not the case."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Turns out that Kiara, my homeroom teacher, happened to be the real villain as she absorbed BB and took control of the Moon Cell. She wanted to use the Moon Cell to spread her twisted view of pleasure."

"I see. What happened next?"

"Isn't it obvious. We beat Kiara and with the help of BB and her sisters, I managed to put myself in an artificial body, although a part of me stayed back at the moon cell. And that is my story of me being a master."

Shirou, Sieg, and Ritsuka were amazed with Hakuno's story.

Especially Ritsuka since all three of them were masters in their worlds' holy grail wars and they fought off against servants themselves with their own hands.

"Wow. So, all three of you actually fought against servants with your hands?"

Shirou, Sieg, and Hakuno nodded in reply.

"That's amazing!" Ritsuka said excitedly. "Just how did all you do that?"

Shirou, Sieg, and Hakuno looked at each other for a moment before saying their answers.

"For me, it was hours of training with my servant," Shirou said.

"For me, I had a heart implant with a heroic spirit," Sieg said.

"And for me, I just fought and that's it," Hakuno said.

Ritsuka was amazed with all their answers. "Wow. You three must be experienced then. In fact, you three make me feel inexperienced compared to the events all of you went through."

Shirou let out a chuckle. "That's not true. You also have experience that we don't have."

"Really?"

"Yes. For example, you went through many singularities and managed to prevent humanity's destruction. That's something you should be proud of," Hakuno said.

"Exactly. Don't feel down after hearing our experiences. Everyone has an experience that is different from everyone. All of us have gone through different experiences that make us who we are now. And that's natural. Not only that, but you also possess your own strengths, and that's something no one can replicate," Sieg said.

"And plus, you still have a lot of time to grow, so be patient, trust in your skills, and improve on them," Shirou said.

Ritsuka felt his confidence growing from the former masters' words, and it brought him relief. "Thank you. Now I feel a lot better."

"No problem. Now, shall we continue with the meal?" Shirou said.

"Yeah!" Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg replied.

And Shirou, Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg continued their meal. However, they didn't realize a certain detail.

Da Vinci was looking at the entire conversation by a hidden camera in a room, with a smile on her face.

"Well, looks like my goal is complete," she thought with a smile on her face.


	75. VR Shenanigans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: This chapter was based on a FGO 4koma called "VR Chaldea for Men."

Ritsuka was walking down the hallway, minding his own business. As he continued walking, it was then that he heard two voices.

"Master!" the voices said in unison.

Ritsuka then turned around to see Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison...who were fighting with each other. Ritsuka let out a sigh as he saw the usual behavior whenever those two meet each other. "Hey there Tesla, Edison."

The two geniuses stopped fighting each other for a moment and turned their attention to Ritsuka. "Oh! Hey there master! We have something for you!"

"Me?"

"Yes! Now give me a moment to bring it out," Tesla said.

"Hey! I should be the one to bring that out! Not you simpleton!" Edison argued.

"Why you!"

The two then began to fight again, making Ritsuka sigh again. "Anyways, what is that item you two wanted to show me?" he asked.

The two quickly stopped their fighting for a moment and Tesla began to take the object out of his bag. "Behold! Our greatest creation! VR Chaldea, prototype number one!"

Ritsuka was speechless for a moment. "Huh?"

"You didn't hear him? This is our greatest creation! VR Chaldea, prototype number one!" Edison repeated.

Ritsuka was still speechless and confused but continued the conversation. "I see...and how does it work by the way?"

"Well, it's quite simple master! You put it on, and it randomly chooses a servant in Chaldea that you have a connection with as a training partner! And using that servant's data, it helps you train in virtual reality! Of course, this wonderful invention was only possible because of my amazing alternate currents!" Tesla continued happily.

Edison was not amused at what Tesla said and replied, "Huuh?! What do you mean alternating currents?!"

"Shut up you idiot!" Tesla interrupted.

"Huh?! You're the idiot here! Are you trying to pick a fight with me!"

"Why you!" Tesla then proceeded to tug on Edison's cheek, which Edison did not like. In retaliation, Edison began to pull onto Tesla's face, which he did not like as well. Meanwhile, Ritsuka let out a sigh upon hearing the description of the VR headset itself.

"Those two will never change..." Ritsuka thought as he watched the fight between the two and decided to break them up. "You two! Quit fighting!"

Tesla and Edison stopped their fighting for a moment and turned to Ritsuka.

"Well? What do you think?" Edison asked.

"Well, it sounds amazing," Ritsuka said with amazement in his voice.

"Exactly! That is why we called for no one else! We would like you to test this invention on other servants to collect data! So that we can make a completed version!" Tesla said.

"So, I'll just go around in your place huh?"

"Exactly."

Ritsuka thought about Tesla's suggestion for a moment and said, "All right! I'll do it!"

"Great! We are leaving it to you! Once we are done collecting data from the other servants, we'll let you have a go at it master!"

"Sure. Have you two tried it out?"

"Of course! The system chose Helena-kun for the both of us. So, we trained in Mahatma!"

"Exactly. It is truly a wonderful system! In fact, it feels so real as well!"

"I see. Anyways, I will ask the other servants out now. See you!"

"Great!"

Ritsuka soon left the hallway, leaving Tesla and Edison alone.

"Well then, that worked out well," Edison said.

"Yeah. Now we have created something that Da Vinci hasn't made yet!" Tesla said.

"Oh yeah. Ever since she went through master's stash of anime and tv shows, she's been thinking of ideas non-stop!"

"I know right?! First was that mystic code that turns anyone into a gundam, and there was that belt that turns anyone into a kamen rider! And she got them working in one shot!"

"Exactly! It feels like she's taking out all the fun of inventing things! Luckily, we managed to produce this invention before she could."

"Right. And it's all thanks to me!"

"Hey! What do you mean it's all thanks to you?! I had a hand in it too!"

"Huh?! And what did you do?! Eh, you useless dimwit!"

"Oh really?! You shouldn't be saying that when most of time you were searching for useless parts!"

"Oh no, you didn't!"

"Oh yes I did!"

And Tesla and Edison began to fight all over again...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_"All right. Now I got this invention that relives a servant's battlefield of their choosing...wonder which servant should I ask first? Maybe I should go with someone easy to get along first..."_

As Ritsuka continued walking, it was then that he met Cú Chulainn.

"Oi! Hey there master!" Cú said with a smile on his face.

"Perfect," Ritsuka thought. "Hey Cú, I have a favor to ask for you."

"Sure! What is it master?"

"Well, can you try this on?" Ritsuka asked as he handed Cú the VR headset.

"Hm? What is this master?" Cú asked as he examined the VR headset.

"Well, it's a VR headset that Tesla and Edison created."

"VR? What's that?"

"Virtual Reality, a simulated experience that can be like or completely different from the real world. Think of it as...well, a new type of training without going outside."

Cú got excited after hearing Ritsuka's description. "A new type of training? Oh, that sounds fun! Let me try it out master!"

"You sure?"

"Yeah!"

"Well, have a go at it then."

"Okay!" Cú then put the VR headset on. "Being able to train while using machines like this is interesting! Let me see how it works!"

Soon, the VR headset started up, and in an instant, it showed Cú what he was about to see. Cú was excited to see what he was about to see in the VR headset.

However, what happened next completely silenced him and made him move back a few steps nervously.

Meanwhile, Ritsuka looked at Cú who was wearing the VR headset while being a nervous wreck at the same time. "Cú's been quiet for a while now. I wonder what the VR headset chose for him?" he thought. After a few more minutes of silence, Cú suddenly took off the VR headset. As he did, Ritsuka saw sweat drops coming down from his forehead. "Whoa. What did Cú see that made him sweat so much like that?" he thought.

Cú then handed the VR headset to Ritsuka. "Master! This thing is bad for my heart! Sorry, but I will not be training using this! I will be leaving now! Bye!" Cú soon left in a hurry, leaving Ritsuka astonished at his actions.

"Wow. I have never seen Cú run like that before...and what kind of training was shown? Anyways, maybe I should find a stoic person next..."

Ritsuka then continued to walk down in the hallway. As he did, he came across another servant.

Houzouin Inshun.

"Hm? Oh, hey there master," Inshun greeted with a smile on his face.

"Inshun, I need your help with this," Ritsuka said as he handed him the VR headset.

"Master, what is this?" Inshun asked as he inspected the VR headset.

"That is a VR headset."

Inshun was confused for a moment. "Vee...ar? What is that?"

"Virtual Reality. It is a simulated experience that can be like or completely different from the real world. You can do so many things in VR, including training as well."

"I see. So, what is it that you want me to do with this?"

"Well, I want you to try this VR headset on. Is that okay with you?"

"Sure! If that is what you ask for, then I'll do it!" Inshun then put the VR headset on. "So, I will be able to train in this vee-ar space, together with someone that I know of?"

"Exactly."

"I see. Well then, here I go!" Inshun then put the headset on and turned it on. As he did, the VR came to life and a person was in front of him.

Inshun then began to sit down on the ground and began to do some stretches that he was seeing. Meanwhile, Ritsuka looked Inshun with relief on his face."Phew. Looks like nothing bad happened to him. Let's see what will happen next..." he thought. However, it was then that he noticed something that was rising from Inshun...and it happened to be from a certain area of his body... Ritsuka let out a small groan. 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well. That was an unexpected side of Inshun I did not expect. Now then, maybe I should find servants that have a strong camaraderie with each other..." Ritsuka thought as he sat down on the couches in one of the recreational rooms. Right now, Ritsuka was taking a break after seeing the side effect that happened on Inshun.

It was then that the Knights of the Round came into the room. As they did, they immediately saw Ritsuka on the couch. "Master?"

"Hm? Oh, hey there Gawain, Lancelot, Tristan, Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth," Ritsuka said as he noticed them.

"Master. What is that in your hands?" Gawain asked.

"Oh this? This is a VR headset."

"Why do have something like that?" Lancelot asked.

"Well, earlier, Tesla and Edison created this and asked me to ask other servants to test it out. What this does is that it helps servants train in virtual reality."

"I see...do you mind if I want to try that out first? I want to see how it works," Tristan said.

"Sure. Here you go." Ritsuka then handed Tristan the VR headset.

"Hm...this headset...I wonder how it works..." Tristan thought as he put on the headset. Meanwhile, everyone else was watching Tristan using the VR headset.

"So, that device just projects a realty inside there that helps you to train? That sounds interesting," Bedivere said.

"Tch. What is the point though? Isn't that the same thing as real training?" Mordred asked.

"Yeah. But on the inside. Look, Tristan's doing something now," Gareth said as she pointed to Tristan.

Everyone then turned to Tristan...and at once had their faces in shock upon what pose Tristan was doing.

And it was extremely easy to understand...and disgusting at the same time.

"Tristan?! What are you doing?! And in that pose of all things?!" they all yelled in unison. Gawain then at once grabbed the VR headset from him. As he did, Tristan said a few words.

"I am...truly happy..."

Gawain let out a sigh. "Honestly, Tristan, what were you doing in that VR headset?! Please bear in mind that such indecent actions would reflect badly on the Knights of the Round Table's reputation!" he said as he put on the VR headset. For a moment, Gawain stood still.

Then in a moment, he said a few words. "How indecent! Absolutely in...de..cent..." he muttered as he raised his hands...

And started to grope in the air, alerting everyone.

"Gawain! What are you doing with those hands of yours?!" they exclaimed.

Lancelot then grabbed the VR headset from Gawain and said, "Sir Gawain! You're guilty of it as well!" As he said that, he then put on the headset. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then Lancelot said, "Ma-Mashu?!" He then stepped back for a moment. "W-Wait! This is wrong! You're my daughter! No wait, son!"

Everyone was shocked at what Lancelot was saying. At that moment, Ritsuka decided to speak out. "Okay! Bedivere, Mordred, and Gareth will not try the VR headset on! Do we all agree on this?!"

"Yes!" They all exclaimed in unison. Ritsuka then grabbed the VR headset from Lancelot and quickly ran away from him.

"Okay! This invention is seriously a bad idea! Every servant that I have asked to test it out on had some weird effects on them! Just what did Tesla and Edison create?! Wait, never mind. I don't even want to know!" Ritsuka thought as he continued to run away from the recreation room. As he ran, it was then that he bumped into a certain servant.

Emiya Shirou.

"Hm? Master?" Shirou said.

Ritsuka stopped for a moment. "Hey there Shirou."

"Master, is that a VR headset in your hands?"

"You know what a VR headset is?"

"Yes. I've heard about them in my time. Anyways, what's with the VR headset?"

"Well, Tesla and Edison created this VR headset for training purposes, but it's been having some weird effects on people who use them, and I don't know why..." Ritsuka said as he handed Shirou the VR headset.

Shirou then inspected the VR headset. "Hm...there doesn't seem to be any problem with it...and everything seems to be in the right places..."

"Shirou, is there something wrong with the VR headset itself?"

"Well, there's nothing wrong with it master. However, if it still worries you, I could try it out and see if there are any problems if you want. Do you mind?"

Ritsuka thought about Shirou's proposition and said, "Sure. Go ahead and see."

"All right. Here goes nothing..." Shirou then put the VR headset on his head. For a while, Shirou did nothing as he stood still, wearing the headset as usual.

Ritsuka gulped as he waited for some sort of reaction that was coming. For a moment, Ritsuka felt relieved as there was no reaction from him.

However, like before, all his hopes were shattered as Shirou began to move back a few steps...before falling at once into the ground.

"Shirou? Shirou?! SHIROOOOOUUUUUU!" Ritsuka yelled, shocked at what just happened.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well master, how did the VR headset go?" Tesla asked.

"Well, it did work. Although it had some weird effects on the people that were testing them out," Ritsuka replied as he handed Tesla and Edison the VR headset.

"Really now?" Edison asked.

"Yeah. Cú took it off at once after wearing it for a few minutes and ran away, Tristan and Gawain were doing some poses that I do not want to talk about, Lancelot mentioned Mashu, Shirou fell to the ground, and Inshun...I don't want to talk about it."

"I see...anyways thank you for your help master!" Tesla said.

"Yes. Thanks to the data you acquired for us, we should see if there are any problems so we can make an official version of this!" Edison said.

Ritsuka let out a sigh, now knowing that the two geniuses should fix what the others were seeing. "No problem. Anyways, I should go now. Bye."

"Bye!" Tesla and Edison said in unison.

Ritsuka then left, leaving the geniuses alone.

"All right. Let us see what data the VR headset had," Tesla said as he connected the VR headset to his computer. After a few moments of waiting for the data to be uploaded, it was done. Upon looking at the data, Tesla and Edison were surprised with what they were seeing.

For Cú's data, it showed Scathach, her counterpart, and Medb.

For Inshun's data, it showed Musashi in a track shirt and shorts.

For Trstan's data, it showed Meltlilth in a track shirt.

For Gawain's data, it showed Passionlip in a leotard.

For Lancelot's data, it showed Mashu in her demi-servant outfit.

And for Shirou's data...it showed Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi...in various outfits.

"Wow...who would have ever known that Emiya Shirou was a ladies' man?" Tesla said.

"Nah. To me, he's a dense eroge protagonist to me," Edison said.

Tesla let out a small sigh. "Well, looks like we've got some fixing we need to do."

"I agree."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update 2/5/2021: Changed the beginning conversation because Tesla is the one with the alternating currents.


	76. How Shirou Became A Heroic Spirit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Sorry for being inactive lately. School started again, and this chapter took a long time to make. Hope all of you enjoyed it.
> 
> Also, in recent news from FGO Arcade about Proto Cu and the Ishtar costume...damn you arcade...

"All Da Vinci, is everything connected?"

"Yes Merlin. The device has been connected to Shirou's head."

Merlin let out a smile. "Great. Now we can how Shirou became a heroic spirit."

Right now, Merlin and Da Vinci were in the corner room of Chaldea's theater, hooking Shirou up to a device that looked like a film recorder from a movie theater. What the device does is that it checks the memories of the user and projects it.

At the same time, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Kama, Sitonai, Astraea, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, EMIYA, Ritsuka and Mashu were in the main room of Chaldea's movie theater.

Mashu was amazed at the number of servants that came into theater. "Wow. This number of servants here...all of them here just to see what Shirou did to become a heroic spirit."

Ritsuka let out a small sigh. "Well, to be fair, most of them knew him already."

"True. Still though, I can't believe that the chat we had with the others earlier would end up turning into this..."

"Me neither," Ritsuka said as his thoughts went back to an earlier point of time...

_(A while ago...)_

Ritsuka, Mashu, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Sitonai, Astraea, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, and EMIYA were in the cafeteria. Arturia and Jaguar-man were eating their food, Ishtar was in a fight with Astraea while Parvati tried to calm the two down, Sitonai was talking with Irisviel and Kiritsugu, EMIYA was in the kitchen cooking up something, and Ritsuka and Mashu were chatting with each other.

All and all, things were quite normal in the cafeteria.

"So, you were in a room with Shirou-san, Hakuno-san, and Sieg-san?" Mashu asked.

"Yeah. Over there, I heard the experiences they went through as masters of their grail wars," Ritsuka replied.

"I see. That sounds good for you senpai."

Ritsuka nodded in reply. "Yeah. Especially the achievements they have done in their grail wars...which reminds me of something."

"What is it senpai?"

"I was wondering how did Shirou become a heroic spirit. Have you ever thought about that?"

"Well...we do know that he destroyed a corrupted grail, went on a traveling journey, met Muramasa-san and fused with him."

"Yeah, but even still, I'm curious..."

"I see...we should ask the others here since nearly all of them know Shirou."

"Good idea." Ritsuka then turned to everyone else who was doing their own business. "Hey everyone, can I ask all of you something?"

Everyone stopped what they were doing for a moment and turned to Ritsuka.

"How did Shirou became a heroic spirit? Does anyone have any guesses?

Everyone was quiet for a moment after hearing Ritsuka's question. For a moment, nobody said anything. Then, Jaguar-man decided to speak out.

"Well...I guess it could be his role in the Fifth Fuyuki Grail War. After all, he did destroy the corrupted grail," Arturia said.

"True," Parvati said.

"Same," Sitonai said.

"I have no clue what that is, but I guess so," Jaguar-man said.

"I see. And how about you Ishtar?"

For a moment, Ishtar said nothing.

"Ishtar?"

Ishtar let out a sigh. "Honestly, I agree with everyone else, but there's something else that all of you need to know."

"What is it?"

Ishtar took a deep breath. "Apparently, after the Fuyuki Grail War was over and his graduation at the Clock Tower, he went through situations that would make the fourth and fifth Fuyuki Grail Wars pale in comparison!" she yelled.

Everyone besides Astraea was shocked at Ishtar's statement. Especially Arturia, Parvati, Sitonai, and EMIYA. "WHAT?!" they all exclaimed.

"Yeah! You heard me! He told me and Astraea that he went through situations that would make the fourth and fifth Fuyuki Grail Wars pale in comparison! I mean, come on! What kind of situations would make the fourth and fifth Fuyuki Grail Wars pale in comparison?! That's unheard of!" Ishtar yelled as she began to rant.

At that moment, everyone was in disbelief over the fact that there was something that makes the fourth and fifth Fuyuki Grail Wars pale in comparison. "Did Shirou ever tell you what those situations were?"

"No! He just kept quiet about it!" Ishtar yelled.

For a moment, everyone was silent as they waited for Ishtar to calm down from her ranting.

"So...aside from him meeting Muramasa-san, no one here knew where or what Shirou-san was doing?" Mashu asked.

"Yes. We have not seen or heard of Sherou ever since he graduated. It was like he completely disappeared off the entire earth," Astraea said.

"I see. And what about you EMIYA?"

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Sorry master, but I'm as clueless as you are. Considering how he looks and how completely different he is from me now, I'm quite sure the path he chose is completely different from mine..."

"I see. And how about you Sitonai? Parvati?"

Sitonai and Parvati nodded sideways in reply, letting Ritsuka know that they were clueless about it either.

For a moment, the silence continued as everyone was trying to figure out what to say. Then Irisviel broke the silence.

"Well then, why do we find out then?" Irisviel asked innocently.

Everyone turned to Irisviel. "What do you mean?" Arturia asked.

Irisviel let out a smile. "Isn't it obvious? If we don't know what Shirou's life after his holy grail war was, then we'll just find that out ourselves!"

"I see. So, we'll ask him then?"

Irisviel let out a smug grin. "Oh, I have a better idea. Just give me a moment..." she said as she left the cafeteria, leaving everyone else with a look of shock on their faces.

"Scary..." they all thought in unison.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, let me get this straight. You want to know about your son's life after the Fuyuki Grail War in his timeline was over, correct?" Merlin said.

"Yes," Irisviel replied with a smile on her face.

"And why are you asking me this?" Da Vinci asked.

"Well, after hearing the conversation about Shirou's life from master and the others, I can't help but wonder what situations he got himself into! From what I heard, my son went through situations that make the fourth and fifth Fuyuki Grail Wars pale in comparison!"

Merlin was shocked but let out a smile. "Is that so? Well, that sounds interesting!"

"Indeed. A serious of events that make the fourth and fifth Fuyuki Grail Wars pale in comparison? That's something I never heard of! All right! I'm in!"

"Perfect!" Irisviel exclaimed with a smile on her face. "Now, how are we going to make this plan work?"

"Well, Da Vinci could make a device that would scan Shirou's memories, and I can knock Shirou out," Merlin said.

"I agree with Merlin here," Da Vinci said.

"Great!"

And thus, Merlin, Da Vinci, and Irisviel began their plan of unraveling Shirou's life after the fifth Fuyuki Holy Grail War...

_(Back to the present...)_

"Even now I'm surprised that news about Shirou's life being shown spread so quickly..."Ritsuka said.

"Me too..." Mashu said.

Meanwhile, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Sitonai, Astraea, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, and EMIYA waiting for the event to start.

"Well, looks like we're finally about to know what he was doing after the Holy Grail War was over," Arturia said.

"Exactly! I will finally know what Emiya-kun was hiding from me!" Ishtar yelled.

"Nee-san, calm down," Parvati said. "Although I also want to see senpai's memories..." she thought.

"I can't blame her though. I mean, from her and Astraea's perspective, onii-chan went missing afterwards with no way to contact him. And this is the perfect opportunity to find out why," Sitonai said.

"I should be ashamed of peeking into Sherou's memories...and yet at the same time, I want to see them so badly!" Astraea thought as she eagerly waited for the event to start.

"Finally, I'll see what you went through Shirou!" Jaguar-man said in excitement.

"Calm down Jaguar-man. As much as I can agree with you right now, be patient," Irisviel said.

"So, mama, the device Da Vinci made does scan onii-chan's memories, right?" Sitonai asked.

"Well, Da Vinci said so, but the device she made was a prototype, so it may be a bit incomplete."

"Well then, let see what my younger counterpart did in his lifetime..." EMIYA thought.

"I wonder what happened to my counterpart of that world..." Kiritsugu thought.

Meanwhile in the corner room of the theater, Da Vinci and Merlin were doing the final touches on the device. "Will this work Da Vinci?"

"Yes. However, this device is still a prototype, so there may be some kinks to fix out."

"I see. Anyways, let the show begin!" Merlin said as he began to turn off the lights. As so, the theater's lights went dim, prompting everyone to be quiet and turned their attention to the giant screen. The screen then lit up, revealing the first scene from Shirou's memories.

-Fuyuki 1994-

At that moment, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Sitonai, and EMIYA immediately knew which scene was first.

The screen showed a young Shirou, walking aimlessly in the Great Fuyuki Fire. As he continued walking, he eventually stopped and fell to the ground, lying down on the ground and raised his hand.

It was then that rubble fell on him, burying him. Shirou couldn't do anything as he waited for death to come and take him.

However, before death could take him, it was then a person found him and grabbed his hand.

"You're alive...you're alive! You're alive!"

The person who found Shirou was Emiya Kiritsugu, who was crying with a smile over the fact that there was one person he found in the fire.

"Hey! It's you Kiritsugu!" Irisviel exclaimed happily.

"Shh. Be quiet," Kiritsugu said.

And then, Shirou blacked out.

-Scene end-

Ritsuka, Mashu, Jaguar-man, Astraea, and Irisviel were shocked at the scene in front of them, Arturia felt a bit ashamed over the fact that she was partially responsible for this event, Kiritsugu was surprised to see something like this, and EMIYA felt painful memories coming back to him.

"Okay, I did not expect this..." Ritsuka said.

"Yes. To think that Shirou-san went through this..." Mashu said.

"This is too sad for Sherou!" Astraea said as she began to tear up.

"So that's how that world's counterpart of me found him..." Kiritsugu said.

"Hey EMIYA, do you feel okay reliving this? I mean, he is you after all," Ritsuka asked.

"Don't worry, I feel fine. This is just an old memory for me," EMIYA replied.

"I see. Anyways, was that what you looked like before?"

"Yes. Before I became a counter guardian, I looked like the man on the screen."

"Wow. I wonder if being a counter guardian involves facial changes..."

Both Kiritsugu and EMIYA looked at Ritsuka and said, "Don't do it," in unison.

-Scene Change-

"Hey. Hey, old man."

Kiritsugu noticed Shirou who was sitting next to him.

"If you're going to sleep, do it in your bed."

"Right...nah, I'm fine."

For a moment, silence was in the air between the two.

"When I was little, I wanted to be a champion of justice."

Shirou was confused from Kiritsugu's sudden words. "What? You wanted to be one? Did you give up?"

"Yeah. It's unfortunate, but being a hero is a limited-time thing. When you grow up, it gets hard to call yourself one." Kiritsugu let out a chuckle. "I should have realized that earlier."

"I see...that's just too bad then."

"Indeed. You're absolutely right."

The silence between the two then continued as Kiritsugu let out a small sigh. He then looked up at the full moon in the night sky. "The moon's really nice tonight."

Shirou nodded in agreement. "Yeah. Since you couldn't do it, I'll do it for you," he said as he turned to Kiritsugu with a smile on his face.

Kiritsugu was stunned a little bit by Shirou's words. "Hm?"

"You're an adult now, so you can't do it. But I can. Leave it to me...your dream."

Kiritsugu was silent for a moment before continuing. "I see."

Then he was silent again and closed his eyes.

"Yeah. I can be at peace now."

For a moment, Kiritsugu didn't move as he just sat still, unmoving. It lasted for a while, and it was making Shirou worried.

"Old man?"

And just like that, Kiritsugu died, leaving Shirou alone...

-Scene end-

Nearly everyone wanted to cry from the scene itself, especially the girls. Meanwhile, EMIYA felt reminiscent of the scene while Kiritsugu just looked at the scene in silent shock.

"So that's how that my counterpart of that world died..." Kiritsugu thought.

"Wow...so that's why I didn't see Kiritsugu...now everything makes sense..." Sitonai said.

"Waaaaaahhhh! Why?! Why did the Kiritsugu of Shirou's world had to die like that?! And to leave poor little Shirou alone like that...it's too sad!" Irisviel said with tears coming out of her eyes.

"Yeah...I agree..." Arturia said

"Me too..." Parvati said.

"This is too cruel for Sherou...why did had to go through all of this?! First was the fire, now he lost his adoptive father in front of him! This is unfair for him!" Astraea said.

"I agree with that!" Jaguar-man yelled.

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Well, blame the grail for this."

"Exactly," Ishtar replied.

-Scene Change-

Shirou was panting as he got into the living room. As he was breathing for air, he felt something in the air.

"It's him! He came after me," Shirou said as he got up, only to fall down again. "A weapon! I need a weapon!"

Shirou then felt the rolled-up poster from earlier. As he grabbed it, he let out a small sigh. "Such luck...but...I just got to give it everything I've got at this point." He then closed his eyes. "Trace on! Material composition, strengthening, complete."

Shirou then got up. "You're on! I'm not going to let the same thing-" he said before he felt another presence in the living room. He then turned around to see Cu striking at him, forcing him to move back while falling at the same time. Shirou quickly regained his posture and assumed in a defensive position.

"Ah, this is just great. I did you a favor by not making you feel any pain," Cu said as he raised his spear. "But...to think I have to kill the same person twice on the same day...don't get lost on your way to hell...THIS TIME!" Cu then lunged his spear while Shirou barely blocked it, forcing the spear to scathe him on his arm.

Cu was a bit surprised. "This is surprising," he said as he examined the earlier action. "I see. The fact that you're still alive after getting your heart run through means something. I feel, as weak as it is, some magic power from you."

Cu then continued to swing at Shirou while Shirou continued to block Cu's swings. Eventually, Cu saw an opening and exploited it, swinging Gae Bolg at Shirou's side, forcing him to fall and crash through the doors.

Shirou tried to get up, but Cu didn't let him recover and lunged his spear again, forcing Shirou to jump through a glass window and run to the nearby toolshed. Cu let out a grin and ran towards him. He caught up to him and kicked him on the side, making Shirou fly towards the toolshed.

"Our game of hide-and-seek...ends here," Cu said as he twirled Gae Bolg and lunged it at Shirou, forcing him to dodge on the stairs. Shirou then fell backwards on the door and ended up in the toolshed. Shirou was trying to get up before Cu caught up to him. "Just give up."

Shirou was frustrated. "Damn it!"

Cu then swung Gae Bolg at the rolled-up poster, shattering it into pieces. He then twirled his spear again. "Checkmate. You gave me a little surprise, kid. Just maybe...you might've been the seventh one..."

"The seventh one?"

Cu chuckled. "Even so, this is the end for you."

"Yeah, right. I just got my life saved. I'm not going to die that easily! I can't just die meaninglessly like this. I can't die!"

It was then that the summoning circle behind Shirou lit up, blinding the two momentary. In an instant, a person came out and attacked Cu, knowing Shirou down on the ground in the process. Shirou then looked up to see the person who attacked Cu.

It was Arturia Pendragon, the King of Knights.

"Servant Saber. Upon your summoning, I have come forth. I ask you, are you my master?"

Shirou was speechless at that moment.

-Scene end-

Everyone was speechless while Arturia was grinning on the inside.

"Wait, so Saber-chan got into the house because Shirou summoned her?!" Jaguar-man yelled.

"Is that how you met Shirou Arturia?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yes. It was one of the most memorable moments in my life," Arturia said with a smile on her face.

"Wow...such a scene like this...it's amazing..." Mashu said.

"Exactly! Just as lancer was almost about to kill him, Arturia shows up and saves the day!" Irisviel exclaimed happily. "Although how was it that there was a summoning circle over there?"

"Kiritsugu, well Shirou's version of that man over there, created that during the Fourth Fuyuki Grail War," Arturia replied.

"I see."

Meanwhile, EMIYA was looking at the scene with nostalgia while Ishtar, Parvati, Sitonai, and Astraea looked at the scene with interest...and a bit of jealously in their eyes.

"So that's how senpai met Saber-san..." Parvati thought.

"Damn, being summoned at that exact moment and save Sherou...nice move," Astraea thought.

-Scene change-

"If it's an opponent you cannot defeat in reality, visualize something that will allow you to defeat him in your imagination," EMIYA's words said as they were in Shirou's mind.

Shirou closed his eyes. "I'll make one for you," he thought.

EMIYA's words came into his head again. "For that is the only thing you can do."

Berserker Hercules jumped towards Shirou while holding Rin in one of his hands.

In Shirou's mind, the blurred image of Caliburn came into his head. The image then switched to Arturia holding Caliburn in her hands.

"I'll make a sword...that you can use!"

In an instant, a projection of Caliburn appeared in Shirou's hands.

"That sword...is my..." Arturia said as she was surprised with the projection of Caliburn.

Shirou looked at the projected Caliburn for a moment before noticing that Hercules was still coming at him. Shirou went for the arm that was holding Rin and slashed it off, breaking the projection in the process.

Shirou moved back for a moment. "Just one more time... A sword that shouldn't have shattered got shattered...because there was a flaw in my visualization." He moved his arms again. "Begin tracing..."

The blurred image of Caliburn appeared in his head again. Meanwhile, Hercules let out a roar and ran towards Shirou.

"The enemy I have to face is myself. I can't allow even a single deviation or compromise in detail," he thought as the projection was forming in his hands.

Hercules then swung his weapon at Shirou.

"Shirou!" Arturia yelled.

Shirou quickly blocked the attack from Hercules. Hercules swung again, forcing Shirou to dodge each swing and move to the side.

"Basic structure, visualized. Component materials, duplicated. Accumulated age, duplicated! All processes involved, exceeded!" Shirou raised his arms. "Bind my visualizations together to form a true sword!"

And then, Caliburn formed in his hands once more.

Hercules went towards Shirou again, swinging his weapon at him again. Shirou blocked his attack, but the force of Hercules' attack made him fly backwards and rolled in the ground.

"Shirou!"

Illya let out a hmph. "There's no way you can beat Berserker, anyway."

Shirou struggled to get up. "I said I'd create a sword that would surpass Berserker...but I can't even use this sword?"

Hercules swung towards Shirou again, but this time, Arturia came in front of Shirou and blocked Hercules' attack. She then moved backwards to where Shirou was. "Shirou, the sword," she said as she held onto Caliburn's handle while looking at Shirou.

Shirou immediately knew what Arturia was thinking at that moment and held Caliburn with her. The projection of Calibrun lit up brightly.

As Hercules swung at both Shirou and Arturia, the couple then swung Caliburn at Hercules together, smashing Hercules's weapon and stabbing him at the same time.

Hercule's eyes went black for a moment while a pillar of light came out.

"Is that...your sword, Saber?" Hercules said.

"This is Caliburn...the sword in the stone which chooses the king...the sword lost for all eternity."

"However, it is nothing more than an illusion created by that man...a sword that will never exist again...but...even an illusion of it is formidable. Who would've thought a sing blow...could have defeated my body seven times..."

And just like that, Hercules disappeared...

-Scene end-

"What scene was that Arturia?" Ritsuka asked.

"That scene...was when me, Shirou, and Rin fought off against Illya and her servant," Arturia replied.

"Sitonai, you were a master?" Ritsuka asked

"Yes," Sitonai replied.

"And I suppose Hercules was her servant?"

"Correct."

"Um...what that Shirou-san's first time using projection?" Mashu asked.

"Yes. It appears that my younger self followed my advice," EMIYA said.

"Wow. You look useless in that scene Ishtar," Astraea said.

"Huh?! Useless?! Just to let you know, I reduced some of his lives! It was his nine lives ability that annoyed me and got me off guard!" Ishtar argued.

"Yeah right," she said as she let out a scoff.

"Why you!" Ishtar grumbled as she planned to start a fight with Astraea.

"Now now nee-san, calm down. We're in a movie theater, okay? We need to follow the rules," Parvati said.

Hearing Parvati's voice, Ishtar calmed down for a moment, but was still angry.

-Scene change-

Shirou and Arturia were on the ground, bleeding as Gilgamesh was laughing.

"Shirou..." Arturia said as she looked in horror at Shirou's condition. Meanwhile, Shirou was trying to breath, but couldn't because of the amount of blood he lost.

"Shirou...Shirou!" Arturia turned to Gilgamesh. "Stop is, Archer I am the one that you want, right?"

Gilgamesh let out a smirk. "Does that mean you're going to be my belonging now?"

Arturia was silent for a moment.

"Answer me, Saber!"

"I.."

"Don't answer!"

Arturia heard Shirou's voice and turned her face towards him, who was trying to get up.

"What are you doing?! It is impossible! Please stop! I do not need you to save me..."

Shirou continued to get up.

"Why...why do you not understand that?"

Shirou still continued to get up.

Arturia closed her eyes. "No...if you die because of this, I-"

"Shut up!" Shirou interrupted.

Arturia was surprised by Shirou's outburst.

"Just be quiet for a bit...you can rely on others in times like this. Rely on..." Shirou muttered as he got up.

"No. You must hold your life more precious than mine-"

"There's nothing that I want more than you, Saber!"

Arturia's eyes widen in surprise. "Shirou..."

"There isn't anything in me that could ever take your place," Shirou said as he finally stood up. "Sorry...I...I love you more than anything else, Saber. So...I'm not going to let a guy like him take you!"

Arturia felt reminiscent at the scene in front of her. "Shirou..."

"You fool! You aren't worthy of this treasure," Gilgamesh said arrogantly.

"Screw off, Hero King!"

"You mongrel...it will take some effort to keep Saber alive, but I suppose I will crush you after all." Gilgamesh began to activate EA, the sword spinning around.

Shirou and Arturia looked at its activation. However, Shirou wasn't done yet as he raised his arm and closed his eyes.

"Trace, on. Visualize it..."

EMIYA's words came into Shirou's mind. "Visualize something you can win with."

"Visualize it..."

"What you should always be visualizing is yourself at your most powerful."

"My most powerful..."

The winds coming from EA were getting stronger, making Arturia look at Shirou in worry.

"Visualize it!"

Shirou opened his eyes and in an instant, a golden pillar of light came out, shocking Gilgamesh. As the pillar died out, it revealed a golden shape. As Arturia saw it, the light in her eyes returned.

"This is..." Shirou muttered.

In an instant, Arturia quickly got up, grabbed Excalibur, and headed towards Shirou's side. "Shirou! Put this in..." She then handed him Excalibur.

Shirou looked at Arturia for a moment before Arturia nodded. Shirou then nodded and grabbed Excalibur.

"Futile resistance!" Gilgamesh yelled as he unleashed EA at both of them.

Shirou and Arturia let out a yell as they placed Excalibur into the shining object. As they did, the blast from EA was immediately deflected and headed right back at Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh blocked it momentarily before being engulfed by it.

Annoyed with the results in front of him, Gilgamesh disappeared, leaving Shirou and Arturia alone. As he did, Excalibur along with the unknown object disappeared as well, and Arturia stopped wearing her armor.

Shirou felt relieved before falling backwards.

"Shirou!" Arturia said as she managed to catch him with a hug.

"Sa...ber..." Shirou muttered.

Arturia closed her eyes in relief and let out a smile. "I finally figured it out..."

The two stayed in that position for a while as Arturia did not want to let go of him.

"Shirou...you are my scabbard..."

-Scene end-

Everyone besides Arturia and EMIYA were shocked at what just happened in the screen. And they had a lot of questions to ask.

"Arturia...was that-?" Ritsuka asked but was cut off by Arturia.

Arturia let out a small sigh. "Yes. That was Avalon, the scabbard to Excalibur. And that wasn't a copy. That was the original."

Nearly everyone besides EMIYA was surprised what she just said. "Avalon?! That was Avalon?! The thing that Shirou-san summoned was Avalon?!" Mashu asked.

"Yes."

"But how though?"

"Well, after Kiritsugu found Shirou, he implanted Avalon inside of him to save him."

Mashu, Sitonai, Astraea, and Jaguar-man were surprised at Arturia's words. "He implanted Avalon inside of him?!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Yes. And because of that, Shirou was able to escape death," Arturia said.

"Does Shirou still have it?" Ritsuka asked.

"No. He gave it back to me during near the end of the war."

"I see...still though, I can't believe Gilgamesh attacked you two because you two were on a date."

Ishtar, Parvati, Sitonai, Astraea, Jaguar-man, Irisviel, and Mashu got mad upon hearing those words. "WHAT?!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Y-Yeah. Gilgamesh attacked them because they were on a date."

At that moment, the girls' anger exploded upon hearing that the King of Heroes attacked them for a petty reason.

"Okay! That's it! I'm going to kill him!" Ishtar yelled.

"Me too!" Jaguar-man yelled in agreement.

"Nobody hurts senpai...NOBODY HURTS SENPAI!" Parvati yelled.

"Somebody bring me Berserker! I'm going to murder him!" Sitonai yelled.

"How is that scoundrel the King of Heroes! He's more of a barbarian!" Astraea yelled.

"I agree with you Astraea-san!" Mashu said.

"Sounds like that guy need a giant punch in the face..." Irisviel said angrily.

"I agree with you," Kiritsugu said as he had his guns ready.

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Master, it seems you have poured oil on multiple fires."

"I can see that..." Ritsuka replied with a sigh as well. "Anyways, the next scene is changing."

Everyone else calmed down as well.

-Scene change-

Arturia was looking at the distant mountains as the sun was rising slowly. The air going through her hair. Shirou was behind her, his last command seal fading away.

"With this, everything has ended, yes?" Arturia asked.

"Yeah. This is the end."

"As your sword, I have defeated all of your enemies and have protected you. I am glad that I have been able to fulfil this oath."

"Yeah, you did well."

"I need to tell you something before I go..."

Silence occurs between the two. For a moment, no words were said before Arturia turns around to see Shirou in the eyes.

"Shirou...I...love you..." Arturia said with a smile on her face.

It was then that the sun came up behind her, blinding Shirou for a moment as he covered his eyes. As he got used to the sunlight, Arturia was gone.

Shirou let out a small smile. "Yeah...that's just like you," he said as he continued to look at the sunrise.

-Scene end-

Arturia, Mashu, Jaguar-man, and Irisviel felt like crying after seeing the scene, Ritsuka felt shocked over the separation between Shirou and Arturia, EMIYA let out a smile, Kiritsugu didn't have a reaction, and Parvati, Sitonai, and Astraea looked at the scene in jealously and sadness at the same time.

"WAAAAHHH! Why did Shirou and Arturia had to be separated near the end of the war?! That's it, I'm calling that world's grail and give it a piece of my mind for making an ending like this! Oh wait, it's destroyed!" Irisviel yelled in tears.

"I know right?! No wonder Shirou looked a little depressed a while ago! He was separated from Saber-chan!" Jaguar-man yelled.

"This is so heartbreaking. It's like I'm watching those TV dramas again..." Mashu said.

"Yeah. I even feel like crying right now," Ritsuka said. "In fact, does anyone have any tissues?"

"Sorry master, but I don't think we have any," EMIYA said. "So, you managed to do one of the many things I failed to do...thank you," he thought with a smile on his face.

"Yes. Quite tragic, isn't it?" a new voice said.

Everyone nearly jumped at the new voice. "Who said that?!" Ritsuka asked.

However, Ishtar and Astraea immediately knew that voice. "That voice...no, it can't be!"

"Me, young Ritsuka."

Everyone looked around to see where the new voice came from. As they looked around, they saw a man sitting behind all of them, eating popcorn. The man looked old, has white hair and a beard, and was wearing old-styled European clothes.

That man was Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg, one of the five living Magicians who were capable of True Magic beyond modern science or Magecraft, and master of the second magic.

"Hello there young Ritsuka. I suppose this is the first time we've ever met," Zelretch said with a smile on his face.

"A-And you are?"

Zeltrech let out a smirk. "My name is Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg, master of the second magic."

While Ritsuka was confused, Mashu was ecstatic to meet him. "K-K-K-Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg?! I-I-I-I-I-It's a pleasure to meet you!" she said nervously.

"Ah, you must be Mashu Kirelight, Chaldea's first demi-servant. It's nice to see you too."

"Y-Yes! T-Thank you very much!"

Zelretch chuckled at Mashu's behavior and then turned to Ishtar and Astraea. "Ah, Rin, Luvia, it's been a while since I've seen you two, although it seems that things between you two haven't changed."

Ishtar let out a sigh. "What are you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to watch how young Shirou became a heroic spirit," Zelretch replied as he continued to munch on popcorn.

"Eh? You're interested in how Sherou became a heroic spirit too?" Astraea asked.

"Well yeah. I mean, he is my favorite entertainer after all."

Everyone was stunned with what Zelretch said. For a moment, nobody said anything. Then Arturia muttered a few words.

"Did you say Shirou is your favorite entertainer?" she said as she was almost about to unleash Excalibur on Zelretch.

"Yeah. I mean, have you seen the stuff he has done? I've seen him do so much crazy shit that impressed me, and that's saying something."

"You mean the stuff he went through that makes the fourth and fifth Fuyuki Grail Wars pale in comparison?" Parvati asked.

"Exactly. In fact, when I overheard the servants Merlin and Da Vinci creating a device that allows to view Shirou's memories in the Kaleidoscope, I invited myself in."

Everyone was dumbfounded at what Zelretch said. "Since when did you get here?" EMIYA asked.

"Ever since the first scene."

Everyone's mouths dropped. "Really?! How come we didn't see you then?! We could have noticed you earlier!" Ritsuka said.

"Because of two things. One was that all of you were focused on the screen in front of all of you, and the other was that I was in the back while all of you were in the front. Simple as that."

Again, everyone was dumbfounded over Zelretch's explaination and they realized he was right.

"Anyways, the next scene is coming, so be quiet. I want to see this."

Everyone quickly shut up and turned to the screen.

-Scene change-

Shirou was walking in a forest, heavily clouded by fog. As he walked in the forest, he saw a few people passed out, sitting on trunk of a tree or lying down on the ground. Shirou looked at the people in worry and examined him. As he did, he noticed that they were alive, just barely. "This many people here...just what happened here that caused this many people to be in this condition? Is this the work of a bounded field? Well, guess I'll have to find it and release it."

Shirou then moved on to explore the forest, hoping to find the source of all the unconscious people. As he did, it was then that he heard a small sound in his ears.

"What the heck? What is this sound in my ears?"

As Shirou continued to explore the forest, the sound in his mind kept getting louder and more accurate at the same time. It was then Shirou realized what the sound was.

It was the clinging of metal, and he exactly knew where that sound came from.

His reality marble.

"The swords in my reality marble...I haven't heard this type of sound from them. Are they resonating to what is in this forest? Well, guess I'll find out soon. It looks like I'm getting closer to the source."

Shirou then kept walking, using the sound in his ears as a guide to find the source of all the unconscious people. As the sound got louder, he realized he was getting closer.

When he found the source, he let out a chuckle as he felt that fate was toying with him.

Because in front of him was a katana that was wedged into a stone upside down. The katana itself looked simple. The handle and hilt was in black, and the blade itself were the size of a regular katana.

However, despite its looks, Shirou felt so much power radiating from the katana itself.

"This katana...this is no ordinary katana. This may be the source of all those unconscious people earlier, although how though? And how is it that this sword itself was able to affect my reality marble? Well, no time to ask questions later. I need to pull it in order to wake those people up."

Shirou then walked up to the katana wedged in the stone and proceeded to pull it out. However, when he did, he felt that something expanded and connected inside of him.

And then Shirou passed out.

-Inside Shirou's reality marble-

When Shirou opened his eyes, he realized he was in his reality marble. As he looked at his reality marble, he let out a small smile at how it looked. It resembled a grassy landscape with multiple flowers and weapons. The sky itself was blue and there was a sun over there.

As Shirou continued to look at his reality marble, he saw his copy of Caliburn, which was embedded on a stone and was near his copy of the Emiya Residence. As he continued to look at it, memories of his time in the Fifth Fuyuki Grail and Arturia came into his head, and he let out a small smile because of it.

However, it was then he heard a voice.

And in his shock, the voice sounded like his, but older.

"Well, I'll be damned," the voice said.

Shirou quickly turned around to see where the voice came from. As he did, he dropped his mouth at the sight in front of him.

In front of him was Sengo Muramasa, the demonic blacksmith. And he looked like Shirou, but he was a little bit older than him.

"W-Who are you? And why do you look like me? And how did you get here?" Shirou asked.

"My name is Sengo Muramasa." Shirou let out a gasp, making Muramasa smirk. "I take it that you know me."

"Well yes. You are the famed blacksmith within Ise Province, the one who forged the Muramasa blades that brought down the Tokugawa Clan."

Muramasa nodded at Shirou's answer.

"What are you doing here in my reality marble? And why do you look like me? Is that sword over there the cause of the many unconscious people I saw earlier?" Shirou asked.

Muramasa sighed at Shirou's impatience. "Kid, calm down. One question at a time. Jeez, impatience is not a trait of a blacksmith."

"I'm not a blacksmith though..." Shirou said.

"Really? Even with all of those weapons in front of you?"

"Well...all of those weapons you see in front of you are weapons I traced earlier..."

Muramasa was confused. "Trace? What the hell is that?"

Shirou let out a small sigh. "This," he said as he raised his hand as he began to project a sword. In an instant, a sword suddenly appeared in his hand, surprising Muramasa.

"What the hell?! What is that?!" Muramasa yelled.

"That's tracing. What tracing does is that it not only does it reproduce the shape and substance of an object, but also its entire history as well just by looking at the object itself. However, the object's rank itself goes down by one."

For a moment, Muramasa did not say anything, and Shirou was wondering if he made him mad. "Are you mad?" Shirou asked.

Muramasa let out a sigh. "Let me check something for a moment kid," he said as he checked the weapon Shirou traced earlier. As Muramasa examined the traced weapon, he was baffled by the high quality the weapon was despite being a copy. "Hmm...hmm..." Muramasa then handed the traced weapon back to Shirou. "Damn, I'm impressed."

Shirou was surprised. "Really? You're not mad?"

"Well, to be fair, I am a bit ticked that you're able to make swords out of thin air without any materials or some sort. However, at the same time, I'm impressed that you were able to make a sword of excellent quality," Muramasa replied.

Shirou felt relieved now he known he did not make the blacksmith mad.

"Anyways, you got questions to ask, right?" Muramasa said.

"Y-Yeah. What are you doing here in my reality marble? And why do you look like me? Is that sword over there the cause of the many unconscious people I saw earlier?"

"So that's the name of the place we're in huh? What is your name kid?"

"Emiya Shirou."

"Emiya Shirou huh? That is a nice name. Well then Emiya Shirou, let me answer both your first question and second question. The reason I am here is because the sword you held on to dragged me out from the afterlife and put me here."

Shirou was confused. "How though?"

Muramasa let out a smirk. "It's because you're my descendant."

Shirou was baffled. "Huh?"

"What? You did not hear me for the first time? You're my descendant."

"I-I'm your descendant?"

"That's right. And the blade you touched was a Muramasa blade."

Shirou was silent. For a moment, he recomposed himself of his mind and emotions, trying to put the pieces together. "Well then...that explains why you look like me. Well, a bit older."

"I know right? Imagine my surprise seeing something that has my face, well, younger that is. I swear, it's like looking in a mirror. Speaking of which, you did take this well," Muramasa said with laughter in his voice.

"I've been through so much stuff that finding out that you're my ancestor seems to be a breeze. Anyways, is that sword over there the cause of the many unconscious people I saw earlier?"

Muramasa let out a sigh. "Sadly, yes. And let me tell you something about that Muramasa blade. A long time ago, that blade was wielded by a swordsman from the Edo period. Over time however, that swordsman became obsessed with blood and went on a murder spree in this area. He was stopped later on, though the blade was later cursed because of my legend and the amount of blood the sword has tasted, thus creating the situation in front of you."

Shirou was surprised. "I see...just one question."

"What is it?"

"Did you have any regrets creating the Muramasa blades?"

Muramasa let out a smirk. "Nah. I didn't have any regret creating the Muramasa blades."

"I see."

"Anyways, now that I have answered your questions, it is my turn to ask you a question."

"Sure. Ask away."

"Just what were you planning to do with all of those weapons here? Are you planning to start a war or something?"

Shirou let out a chuckle. "Nope. The weapons you see here are the results of my journey."

"Journey? For what? Power? Fame? Wealth?"

Shirou let out a small sigh. "To search for a certain person, in hopes of meeting her again."

Muramasa let out a smirk. "And I suppose said person happened to be related to that sword over there?" he asked as he pointed to Shirou's copy of Caliburn, which was embedded on a stone.

Shirou was slightly shocked. "How did you know?"

"Easy. Before we had this conversation, you were looking at that sword in the stone for quite some time. I figured you might have either a connection with the sword, or rather, the user itself."

"I see..."

For a moment, none of them said anything as both Shirou and Muramasa were trying to figure out how to continue the conversation. Then Muramasa had a few words to say.

"Let me ask you this kid, just how important is that person of yours that you are trying to search?"

Shirou let out a smile. "She is the most important person to me in my entire life. After we were separated from each other, I made a promise to myself to see her again and live in her honor."

Muramasa was intrigued for a moment. "Even if you have to risk your life to see her?"

"Yes."

For a moment, Muramasa was silent. Then after a few minutes, he started to laugh and gave Shirou a slap on the back, making Shirou confused from his sudden action. "What?" Shirou asked.

"Kid, that is one of the craziest dreams I have ever heard of!" Muramasa said with laughter. "You would actually risk your own life to search for a girl? That's something I have not ever heard in a while! Not in this era that is!" Muramasa continued laughing while Shirou let out a small sigh. After a while, Muramasa was done laughing and spoke to Shirou again.

"You know, you and I are a lot similar."

"How so?"

"Well, I've spent my life trying to create the ultimate blade, and you spent your life searching for the girl you were looking for."

"Yeah. Both of our dreams may be impossible for us, but I will never give up. No matter what happens later on, I won't waver. As long as I live, I will continue to search for her, as this path is the one I chose without any regrets," Shirou said as he raised his hand into the sky.

"Even if it ends in your death?"

"Yes."

Muramasa was impressed with Shirou's conviction and did not sense any hesitation in his words.

Which led to a certain conclusion.

"Okay then kid, I have decided."

Shirou was confused for a moment.

"I've decided that I'm staying here in your reality marble," he said as he sat on the porch of the copied Emiya Residence.

Shirou was baffled for a moment. "Huh?"

"Yeah. You heard me, I'm staying here in your reality marble."

"Why though?"

"Because your reality marble is a better place than the afterlife itself. It's gotten quite boring over there. However, with all those swords in front of me...I can't pass on an opportunity like this! I must examine them all!"

Shirou was shocked with Muramasa's outburst. "He sounds like a mad scientist...or magus..." he thought with a shocked face.

Muramasa then turned to Shirou's shocked face. "Don't worry kid, I'm not going to possess your body or haunt your mind. I'm just going to stay here quietly and that's it."

"I see."

"However, in exchange for me residing in your reality marble, I will give you all of the information of the Muramasa blades and the Tsumugari Muramasa, my noble phantasm."

Shirou was shocked about this. "Really? All of the blades you created?"

"Yeah. Think of it as a gift from your ancestor."

Shirou was stunned for a moment, but he accepted the offer. "Very well, I accept."

Muramasa let out a smirk. "All right then. Now all we need to do is to transfer the information about the Muramasa blades into you."

"Yes, but how do we do that?"

"Simple. Come here for a moment."

Shirou then got closer to Muramasa for a moment. It was then Muramasa placed his hand on Shirou's forehead.

"This will hurt for a moment."

And in an instant, Shirou felt a bunch of information coming into his head, feeling like he could pass out...again.

-Back to the real world-

Shirou woke up and realized that he was on the ground. As he came conscious, he noticed that the katana was still there, wedged in the stone.

However, that was not the only thing that he noticed.

Because when he checked himself, he realized that the attire he was wearing was completely different now. Instead of clothes he was wearing before, he was wearing Muramasa's outfit. Not only that, but his body also went through some changes as well. His body now has a definite build and his was taller.

However, the biggest change was the amount of mana that was in his body now.

"So, this is what it feels like to fuse with a spirit...wait, why did my clothes change to the ones Muramasa was wearing?" Shirou then turned to the Muramasa blade that was still wedged in the stone. "Well, I've a cursed sword to pull out..."

Shirou then went up to the Muramasa blade and pulled it out of the stone. As he did, he then raised it in the air, symbolizing the fusion between him and Sengo Muramasa.

-Scene end-

"So that was the full story between Shirou and gramps..." Ritsuka said with interest.

"Yeah," Zelretch said. "Although in my opinion, I think young Shirou's luck got a lot worse after picking up that blade," he said jokingly.

"What do you mean by that?" Mashu asked.

"Well...as I mentioned earlier, he encountered so much crazy shit afterwards."

"What kind of crazy shit are you talking about?" Ishtar asked impatiently.

"Now, now, be patient Rin. That will come up soon."

"Fine..."

"Hey Arturia, isn't that scene familar to you?" Sitonai asked.

"Yes. That scene reminded me of the time I drew Caliburn from the stone. For some reason, it feels funny to me," Arturia said with a chuckle at the end.

"How so?"

"Well, I never expected Shirou to go through something like this..."

"Me neither. It's almost a reenactment of what you went through," EMIYA said as he did not expect the meeting to go like this.

Meanwhile, Astraea was looking at the scene with confusion.

"Is there something wrong Astraea?" Parvati asked.

"That outfit...isn't Sherou cold when wearing that wherever he goes?"

Everyone nearly sweatdropped upon hearing Astraea's question. "Really?"

-Scene change: Unknown reality marble-

There were flames everywhere. In fact, the entire space was in flames expect the floor.

Shirou was panting as he was nearly exhausted from all the dodging he had to do. "Hah...hah...man, this is going to be harder than I thought...and these flames are making things worse..." He then looked at the enemy in front of him.

And his enemy was Zephyranthes El Silique, a former magus turned dead apostle ancestor who has gone rogue a long time ago.

In an instant, Zephyranthes raised his hands and slammed them on the ground. As he did so, a pillar of flame was about to appear below Shirou. Shirou felt the heat below him growing and barely dodged the upcoming pillar of flame that came out from the ground.

However, it wasn't the only pillar of flame he had to dodge as another pillar came up below him. Shirou barely dodged that one as well.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Dance I say! Dance in the palm of my hand!" Zephyranthes yelled.

"Tch! I don't have time for this! I need to get closer..." he thought as he continued dodging the pillars of flames Zephyranthes kept summoning. As Shirou kept dodging the pillars, he got closer to where Zephyranthes was, bit by bit.

EVentually, he finally reached to where Zephyranthes was. Using his Muramasa blade, he then slashed one of Zephyranthes's arm.

"Damn you!" Angered by Shirou's action, Zephyranthes then created a wall of flames around, forcing Shirou to move back.

Zephyranthes looked at the stump where his arm used to be and became angry. "How dare you...how dare you cut my arm off and ruin my fun!"

"Fun? You mean killing innocent people and draining them of their blood?" Shirou asked angrily.

"Yes! Killing people and taking their blood gives me pleasure and joy! After all, it is what a dead apostle ancestor lives for! Blood! I love the taste of blood and human flesh as I bit into them! Especially the ones that are still alive and struggle against my whim! It makes it more interesting! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

At that moment, Shirou knew that this Dead Apostle Ancestor was too dangerous to be left alive, which meant Shirou only had one way to solve this problem.

To kill him.

Shirou then got up, still breathing for air and using his Muramasa blade for support. "Looks like there's no other to talk you out of this huh?"

Zephyranthes stopped laughing for a moment. "Sadly, yes. There is only one end to this. Either you...or I die," he said sarcastically. "Anyways, let's finish this."

"Agreed," Shirou said as he put his Muramasa blade back into its scabbard. As he did, he then raised his arm. "Trace on."

In an instant, a weapon appeared in his hands.

It was Gáe Bolg, the barbed spear of death.

Shirou twirled the spear like how Cu would and was in a position similar to how Cu would use his spear. For a moment, nothing happened between the two as they were waiting for who would make the first move.

Then Shirou made the first move and lunged towards him. Zephyranthes then shot blasts of fire at him, but Shirou dodged some of the blasts while deflecting them at the same time.

Zephyranthes was getting tired of this and decided to end the battle a bit quicker. He then gathered up his mana and then proceeded to summon a giant pillar of flame at Shirou who didn't have time to dodge it and was hit with it.

Looking at the event, Zephyranthes let out a sigh as the flames engulfed around Shirou. "Well, looks like my fun is over. Oh well, might as well to wait for the next unlucky victim..." he thought as he looked at the pillar of flame.

However, to his surprise, Shirou suddenly came out from the pillar flame, catching him off guard. In an instant, Shirou stabbed him with Gáe Bolg.

And he felt the pain.

"D-Damn...you..." Zephyranthes muttered before he died. Shirou pulled Gáe Bolg from his lifeless body, making him fall forward to the ground.

Shirou looked at Zephyranthes's lifeless body. "Well, it's over now..."

-Scene end-

Everyone was confused with what just happened while Zelretch let out a sigh.

"Um...Zelretch, who that person that Shirou killed?" Ritsuka asked.

Zelretch let out a sigh. "That person was Zephyranthes El Silique, a former magus who turned into a dead apostle ancestor who has gone rogue a long time ago."

Ishtar, Astraea, Sitonai, and Mashu were shocked at what Zelretch said. "What?!" they all exclaimed.

"Yes. You heard me," Zelretch said with a smirk on his face.

"Emiya-kun went up against a dead apostle ancestor?! All by himself?!" Ishtar yelled.

"Exactly. And this was the first time he's done it. Later, he would encounter more to my surprise."

"Why though?! Why did Sherou had to fight against a dead apostle ancestor?!" Astraea asked.

"Apparently, he heard reports of him terrorizing a few villages in the north. So, like the hero of justice he is, he went there and killed the dead apostle ancestor, causing his rampage to end."

Ishtar, Astraea, Sitonai, Mashu, Jaguar-man, and Irisviel were amazed with what Shirou did. "Wow...so that's how Shirou-san became a heroic spirit..." Mashu said.

"Well, that's one part of it in his story," Zelretch said with a smirk.

"Of course, there's more after all," Sitonai said.

"Exactly."

"Um...what's a dead apostle ancestor?" Jaguar-man asked.

"It's something that you don't need to know Jaguar-man," EMIYA said as he forced the hood of her pajamas on her head.

"Hey!"

-Scene change: Unknown Laboratory-

Shirou was running in a hallway, searching for a certain room. "Come on...hope I'm not too late!" he thought as he kept running. Eventually, he eventually found the room he was searching for and busted the door open. In the room revealed a certain magus Mashu would never think to see again.

Beryl Gut.

Ritsuka and Mashu were surprised upon seeing Beryl Gut's face. "Beryl?!"

"Beryl Gut! Stop what you are doing!" Shirou yelled.

Beryl let out a maniacal grin. "Stop? This piece of work that I am creating? Oh no Emiya Shirou! This is only the beginning!" he yelled as he added the final object he needed for the ritual he was conducting.

As he did, a huge bright light suddenly appeared from the ritual itself, making both Shirou and Beryl cover their eyes over how bright it was. Soon, the light disappeared, revealing what Beryl was making.

A red stone. However, it wasn't any normal red stone as Shirou felt a twisted power coming from it.

Meanwhile, Beryl let out a maniacal grin. "Finally...I have done it! I have created the Philosopher's stone!" he yelled in glee.

Shirou was nearly shocked. "The Philosopher's stone?! You mean that legendary stone?!" he yelled as he remembered it from a book he read.

"Yes! After many years, it is now mine!"

"What do you plan on doing with the philosopher's stone?!"

Beryl went silent for a moment upon hearing Shirou's question. "Well...if I were to give you an answer...I would say that I would use it to kill people."

Shirou was baffled with Beryl's answer. "You would use it...to kill people...?!" he muttered angrily.

"Well yes. See, I'd like to remain exactly the piece of shit that I am. — becoming my best self is the sort of nonsense that I'd never want. And my best self...is killing people, no matter what. And with the philosopher's stone in my hand, killing people will be a lot easier."

"Is that why you killed all of those people at the village?"

"Yes. And I would have killed more, if it wasn't for you, Emiya Shirou," he said with a sadistic grin. "Anyways, it was nice chatting with you, but I've got so many people to kill after this..."

Beryl gripped the stone in his hand tightly, and it grew brighter.

"So, I'm going to ask you to die now."

And in an instant, multiple balls of energy appeared in front of Beryl. Beryl waved his hand and they immediately headed towards Shirou. Shirou dodged them barely and as he did, he noticed the damage the balls of energy caused.

Which left giant holes on the walls.

"So that's the power of the Philosopher's Stone...it's more powerful than the books ever said..."

Beryl let out a laugh. "So, this is the power of the Philosopher's stone! It's even more powerful than I could ever imagined! With this, I could kill anyone that I would ever meet!" he said with laughter.

"Not on my watch!" Shirou yelled as he projected his bow along with a sword and shot the sword at Beryl. However, Beryl broke it as he used the Philosopher's stone's power. Realizing that did not work, Shirou began to use a different tactic as he began to rush towards Beryl while dodging the blasts of energy Beryl was shooting at him at the same time.

Soon, Shirou got closer to Beryl. "At this range...I got him!" he thought as he projected Kanshou and Bakuya and was about to slash him down.

However, to his surprised, Beryl erected a barrier out of nowhere, blocking Shirou's attack and forcing him to go backwards.

"Hahahahahaha! You can't beat me Emiya Shirou! Not when I have the Philosopher's Stone in my hands!" he yelled in madness.

Shirou was panting. "As much as I don't want to admit it, he's right. If this keeps going any longer, I'll be the one who goes down first. I need to finish it fast, but how though?"

As Shirou was thinking, it was then he remembered EMIYA's words.

"If it's an opponent you cannot defeat in reality, visualize something that will allow you to defeat him in your imagination."

Shirou then began to image a weapon in his mind. "A weapon...I need a weapon...a weapon that can cut through anything..."

Meanwhile, Beryl saw a chance as Shirou was just standing there, his eyes closed. He let out a smirk, thinking that he already won. "Well then, looks like I win! Goodbye Emiya Shirou!" he yelled as he shot a lethal blast of energy at Shirou.

And that blast was undodgeable.

Beryl let out a smirk as the blast was getting closer to Shirou, knowing that he was going to win.

However, before the blast hit Shirou, he said two words.

"Trace on."

In a surprise turn of events, the blast was deflected, surprising Beryl. The blast hit the celling, creating some debris and dust around him. As the dust cleared, Beryl was surprised with what was in Shirou's hands.

In Shirou's hands were two katanas that had the designs of Kanshou and Bakuya.

"W-W-What are those swords?! How were they able to block that blast?!" Beryl yelled.

Shirou was silent for a moment before answering his question.

"Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya."

Beryl was surprised for a moment. "Huh?! I never heard of those weapons before!"

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Well of course, they're something I created after all."

"Huh?! What are you?! A blacksmith?!"

"Well...I fused with one if that counts..."

Beryl was confused with Shirou's answer. "Never mind that!" he yelled as he shot another blast of energy at Shirou. However, Shirou saw the blast coming and dodged it. Beryl continued to shoot at Shirou, but Shirou kept dodging while deflecting some of the blasts at the same time.

"Damn you!" Beryl then used stone to lift himself by using the floor under him to lift himself up, creating a pillar under him. However, Shirou the sliced the pillar down, forcing Beryl to jump down to the ground. Shirou then rushed at him, forcing Beryl to use the Philosopher's Stone to create a barrier of energy around him.

However, Shirou slashed the barrier down with Myoujingiri Muramasa: Version Kanshou and Bakuya, scaring Beryl.

"I-Impossible!" he yelled in an outburst. Worring that Shirou was getting closer, Beryl then gathered all his mana for a last resort. As he did, he then released all of it at Shirou, creating a giant beam that Shirou wasn't able to dodge. "Take this!"

However, Shirou didn't need to dodge.

Because at that moment, Shirou brought out his hand and said a few words.

"Rho Aias! Version Avalon!"

In an instant, a golden seven-petaled flower appeared in front of Shirou, protecting him from the blast. Soon, the blast disappeared, revealing Shirou protected by the golden seven-petaled flower.

Beryl was stunned at what just happened and couldn't figure out what to do next. As he was going into a mind frenzy, Shirou was getting closer to where Beryl was, and it was freaking Beryl out by the second.

"S-Stay back!" he yelled as he raised his arm. However, that action proved to be a mistake for Beryl as Shirou saw a chance and knocked the Philosopher's stone out of Beryl's hand. After that happened, he raised his fist.

"It's over."

And Shirou punched Beryl in the face with an reinforced fist, knocking him out.

"D-Damn you..." Beryl muttered as he dropped to the ground. Shirou then moved away from the dead body and headed towards where the stone was. He then picked the stone up. As he did, he examined the stone and concluded one thing.

"This stone...it shouldn't be here. Not in these hands or in this world."

Shirou then threw the stone and in an instant, he sliced the stone into pieces.

-Scene end-

Everybody was shocked at what just happened, especially Ritsuka and Mashu.

Because they did not expect to see Beryl Gut to be a part of Shirou's journey.

"Wow...I did not expect to see Beryl here," Ritsuka said.

"Me neither. And the way he was acting...it scares me. I know that he was a criminal at the clock tower, but this...this is new," Mashu said.

"Yeah. And the way he was saying...it sickens me."

"Agreed. He sounds like an enemy of women as well," Jaguar-man said.

"Indeed. It's a good thing Shirou knocked him out," Irisviel said with a smile.

Meanwhile, Ishtar was shocked for a different reason. "What the hell?! The Philosopher's Stone exists?! And Emiya-kun destroyed it?!" she yelled.

"It seems so," Sitonai said.

"Isn't that a shame? I mean, it is noble of Sherou to not let it fall into the wrong hands, but why did he destroy it?"

"Well, he just didn't want anyone to misuse its power, especially people like him," Zelretch said.

"Exactly," Arturia said.

"True...still though, he could have shown it to us at least..." Astraea said.

EMIYA let out a sigh. "Like he would. To be fair, he's me after all, and I don't carelessly show stuff around to other people," he thought.

-Scene change: Unknown battlefield-

Sword clashed against sword. A red blade versus a silver blade. The landscape itself looked torn from the clash between the two. There were craters and swords everywhere.

And in the middle of all of that was Emiya Shirou fighting a mysterious person. The mysterious person had long black hair, red eyes, and was wearing a long black robe.

That person was known as Asakim Dowen.

As Shirou and Asakim were clashing swords, the mysterious person moved back for a moment. As he did, he brought out his hand.

"Raster Edge!" Asakim yelled.

Upon hearing those words, Ritsuka was shocked. "No way..." he thought.

In an instant, a beam of green light came out of Asakim's hand and went towards to where Shirou was, forcing him to dodge. Seeing an opportunity, the mysterious person rushed towards Shirou and proceeded to strike him down. However, Shirou saw that coming that blocked his attack. Shirou kicked Asakim back, gaining some distance from him.

"Sword Barrel: Full Open!" Shirou yelled.

In an instant, multiple blades appeared behind Shirou. Shirou then went forward at Asakim with the floating swords behind him. In an instant, the swords behind Shirou immediately launched themselves at Asakim who blocked them with ease.

Despite that, Shirou pressed forward towards Asakim, clashing with him once again. As he did, they kept swinging their swords at each other. As the swinging of swords continued, Shirou then projected another sword to try to get an advantage on him. Soon, Shirou began swinging two swords at him, but it didn't make any difference as Asakim was handling it normally.

As they locked swords at each other, they then went back to their corners, gaining some distance from each other. It was then that Asakim then raised his hand in the air.

"Gokuen No Goyo: Embrace the Inferno!"

Suddenly, a dark aura appeared around Asakim and then he released a black shockwave around the entire area.

Noticing the danger from the shockwave, Shirou raised his hand. "Rho Aias: Version Avalon!"

In an instant, a golden seven-petaled flower appeared in front of Shirou, protecting him from the shockwave. However, even Rho Aias: Version Avalon was having a hard time defending against the black shockwave. At the end of the shockwave, Rho Aias: Version Avalon broke into pieces, making Shirou exhausted from the attack it handled.

Asakim was surprised with what just happened. "Not bad...but let's see how you can handle this," he said as he raised his sword...and used his other hand to grab the blade, moving his hand sideways. As he did that, his hand was bleeding.

However, he didn't mind as in an instant, he lunged himself at Shirou in high speed, catching him off guard. "Rumbling DisCalibur!"

And then he stabbed Shirou. However, he wasn't done yet as he grabbed him with his hand that was bleeding and went up into the air with him. He then let go of him and then started to slash him continuously while creating a magic circle around him.

While letting out a haunting laugh.

Everyone's eyes widen upon seeing Shirou getting stabbed, and they were getting worried.

As Asakim finished the magic circle, the magic circle suddenly blew up, forcing Shirou to go down to the ground. Miraculously, Shirou survived, but barely.

"Hah...hah...hah...that was close. If it wasn't for me reinforcing my body, I would have been dead already..." he thought as he struggled to get up. As he was getting up, Asakim landed on the ground in front of him.

"Well then, you seem to be quite the interesting person here. You managed to survive Rumbling DisCalibur. Quite the feat here," Asakim said.

"Well...I'll take that as a complement," Shirou said as he was panting for breath.

Asakim smirked. "You know, you are quite the enigma to me. Why is it that you keep living and fighting despite the pain you are in? We have been at this for a few times and you are still here. Just what is that drives you? How are you able to be still here?"

Shirou was silent for a moment before saying his answer. "There is...a promise I made to myself that I need to keep..." he said.

"Really now?"

"Yeah. And until I fulfill my promise...I will continue to live. No matter how painful life can be...or how much I suffer...I will live...until I meet her again."

Asakim was silent for a moment before he continued to talk. "I see...then let me ask you this."

Shirou stayed silent for a moment.

"Would you give me the pleasure of taking that away from you?"

For a moment, Shirou felt his anger rising from the mysterious person's question. However, he calmed himself down and replied, "I'll die before I'll let that happen."

Asakim let out a smile. "Well then. Try and stop me from doing so."

"I will."

Shirou then sheathed his Muramasa blade and raised one of his arms while placing the other on the raised arm. As he did, he then began to chant.

"My body is made out of swords."

In an instant, swords appeared around him.

"My blood is of iron and my heart of glass."

As Shirou continued his chant, his magical circuits began to flare up in his body, making them visible to see.

"I have created over a thousand blades."  
"Unaware of loss, nor aware of gain in every battle."  
"Withstood pain to create weapons, striving for that utopia."  
"This body is made out of infinite swords!"

And at that moment, everything was encased in a bright light, causing Asakim to close his eyes.

-In Shirou's reality marble-

Asakim opened his eyes to see that he along with Shirou were in a different battlefield. As he looked at Shirou's reality marble, he noticed the many weapons that were around.

"Surprised, aren't you?"

Asakim turned around to see Shirou in the distance.

"Switching individual and collective, fantasy and reality, inside and outside...overwriting the world with one's mind," Shirou said as walked towards Asakim. "The innermost thaumaturgy, reality marble."

Shirou unsheathed his Muramasa blade. "This is the place...that both he and I saw. Hey...what do you think?"

Asakim didn't say anything.

"It's a word encompassing an infinite number of swords. But to me, they're more like graves," Shirou said as he pointed his Muramasa blade at Asakim. "Sorry, but please keep me company until my blades run out."

Asakim let out a smirk. "Very well. I hope you can keep things interesting for me as well," he said as he also pointed his sword at Shirou.

Soon, Shirou and Asakim ran towards each other and started clashing once more. Sword swing met sword swing, block met block, neither of them were giving up an inch.

Shirou then ran towards Asakim while summoning swords to attack him. However, Asakim was dodging them easily while swinging his sword at the falling swords. He then raised his hand and then floated in the air. "Tragic Genocider!"

In an instant, small black birds appeared from Asakim's hand and went for Shirou. However, Shirou saw the black birds coming and proceeded to dodge them while fending off some of them at the same time.

However, that was all a distraction as Asakim appeared from the air and tried to slash Shirou. However, Shirou managed to see that coming and blocked his attack head on. He then pushed him back and proceeded to charge at him.

As he did, he then summoned Caliburn out from its stone, grasped it in his hands, and swung at him. "Sword of Selection, grant me power! Cleave the wicked! Caliburn!"

In an instant, a giant beam of light appeared from the tip of the sword and was fired at Asakim. He barely had time to dodge at the distance between him and Caliburn was close and was hit with the blast.

However, the onslaught continued as Shirou then projected a bow and Caladbolg. He then placed the sword on the bow and then started to prop it.

"My core is twisted in madness! Caladbolg!"

And in an instant, Shirou shot Caladbolg at the mysterious stranger, creating a giant explosion upon impact. Shirou let out a sigh as he saw the explosion. "Phew. Hope that did it. But then again, this is an evil interdimensional space god that can control the Akashic Records we're talking about here, so I wouldn't be surprised if he survived that." he thought.

Everyone beside Ritsuka had their eyes widen upon hearing that. "Wait, what?" they thought.

And just as Shirou thought that, Asakim came out of the blast, although not unscathed.

"Well now, shooting a sword with a bow...that's quite unheard of."

Shirou let out a sigh. "You aren't the first one to say that you know..."

Asakim let out a chuckle. "True. Anyways, as much as I want this to continue...I think it's about time that we end this."

"Agreed," Shirou said as he unsheathed his Muramasa blade and held it up. Meanwhile, the mysterious person then grabbed DisCalibur and used it to create a wound on his hand. As he did that, he then raised his hand.

"Embrace the darkness and break the light!" he yelled as he jumped. "Evil Divinity!"

In an instant, three dark magic circles appeared in front of him and flew through the three magic circles. As he did, he was surrounded by a black aura.

Meanwhile, Shirou was preparing to unleash his noble phantasm.

"I'm not the King of Knights, Arturia.  
I'm not the one praised as the Hound of Ireland, Cu.  
I'm not the Witch of Betrayal, Medea.  
I'm not the great hero, Hercules.  
I'm not the wandering swordsman, Sasaki.  
I'm not the fallen goddess, Medusa.  
And I'm not the counter guardian of humanity, EMIYA.  
Why, out of all people, I, a magus, was summoned.  
For being unable to foresee that, this is your defeat."

"Once seeking for the ultimate blade.  
A blade of steel cutting no flesh, nor bones and neither life.  
What I seek for is the clearance of resentment.  
The cutting of bonds, fate and destiny."

Shirou's Muramasa blade soon began to glow. At the same time however, every sword that was in Shirou's reality marble started to light up and there was a red aura around him that was swirling around him like a harsh wind.

"That is, to free oneself from Karma."

"Upon one's arrival are countless tools.  
Carved over a thousand blades, forming a pile of swords.  
This is the place where all paths cross.  
This is the place where all desires flow.  
This is the place where all deaths await.  
My whole life was for this single swing."

Soon, Asakim was getting closer to Shirou. "Fall into the infinite prison! Ley Buster!" he yelled.

However, it was then that Shirou swung his sword.

"The heart of the blade is right here!  
Take this, this is my Tsumugari Muramasa!"

Shirou then swung Tsumugari Muramasa at Asakim. As he did, a few pillars of fire suddenly came out of the ground. Afterwards, the pillars disappeared, revealing the two.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then Asakim stood up and said a few words.

"Well then...looks like I lost."

And then, a bunch of blood splurted out from Asakim as he fell to the ground. Shirou did the same but caught himself at the last moment and instead was kneeling on the ground.

"So...this is what death feels like..." Asakim then started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Shirou asked.

"Well, throughout my life, I've been trying to find a way to die. However, this cursed body of mine wouldn't allow it. I thought I would be cursed to wander forever, not being able to die...until I met you that is."

"I see...how does it feel?"

"Honestly, it feels...refreshing."

"I see...rest...for all of eternity...in the afterlife..." Shirou said while breathing air at the same time.

Shurouga let out a smile. "Yeah. Maybe...I'll will..."

"Goodbye...Asakim Dowen..."

"Yeah. Goodbye...Emiya Shirou..."

Asakim started to disappear, not before saying his last words.

"The wind is calling me, that voice I heard once before."

And then Asakim Dowen disappeared as his body faded away, leaving his blade behind...

-Scene end-

Everyone was completely speechless at the scene while Zelretch let out a smirk.

After all, they just saw Shirou kill an evil interdimensional space god that can control the Akashic Records from another universe.

For a moment, nobody said anything. Then Arturia decided to break the silence.

"Um...Zelretch...are my eyes deceiving me or did we just witness Shirou-?" Arturia asked but was cut off from Zelretch.

Zelretch's smirk grew even bigger. "Your eyes aren't deceiving you, young Arturia. Shirou killed an evil space god."

At that moment, everyone exploded. "What?! Shirou/Emiya-kun/Senpai/Onii-chan/Sherou killed an evil space god?!"

"Yup."

As soon as EMIYA heard Zelretch's answer, he was freaking out on the inside. "OKAY! THIS IS RIDICULOUS! HOW DID MY YOUNGER SELF MANAGED TO GET INTO A FIGHT WITH AN EVIL SPACE GOD!? AND FURTHERMORE, AN EVIL SPACE GOD THAT CAN CONTROL THE AKASHIC RECORDS FROM ANOTHER UNIVERSE?! WHAT IS THIS BULLSHIT ZELRETCH?!" he thought.

"How though?! How is that even possible?! He may have Tsumugari Muramasa and a reality marble, but this is crazy! Even for that idiot! Plus, if word about this spread, he would have gotten himself a sealing designation immediately! Or from any of the other stunts!" Ishtar yelled.

"Exactly! And why did Sherou had to go and fight him?!" Astraea said.

"It's because I asked him to do it."

Everyone was stunned for a moment. "You asked him to do that?!" they said in unison.

"Yeah."

"But why though?! Why did you ask Shirou to kill an evil interdimensional space god that can control the Akashic Records from another universe?! Are you trying to kill him or something?!" Irisviel ranted.

"Yeah! Wasn't there anyone else?!" Sitonai asked.

"And plus, who is Asakim Dowen?! I've never heard of him!" Mashu said.

"One question at a time people, one question at a time," Zelretch said with a sigh. Soon, everyone got quiet, allowing Zelretch to explain his reasons. "Okay. As I mentioned earlier, Asakim Dowen is an evil interdimensional space god who was cursed with immortality and has went through the cycle of destruction and rebirth many times, causing the destruction of many universes."

Everyone besides Ritsuka was dumbfounded over Zelretch's explaination.

"It was then Asakim had his sights on Shirou's world, which worried me a lot. So, I had to ask him because well...he was the only one nearby at the same time."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Don't get me wrong, I did tell him that he can reject the fight, but he actually accepted it and went headfirst into it."

Ishtar let out a sigh. "That idiot..." she muttered. "Well then again, that's expected from Emiya-kun."

"Still though, I'm surprised. To think that Sherou would go up against a god, and win...that's amazing!" Astraea said in glee.

"Exactly. I'm relieved that Shirou managed to beat an evil god and save the world," Arturia said with pride.

Meanwhile, Ritsuka was silent for the whole time. "Um senpai...are you okay?"

"Yeah...yeah, I'll be fine..." Ritsuka muttered.

However, Ritsuka's mind was having different thoughts.

"Okay, how the hell did Shirou manage to meet an antagonist of the entirety of the Super Robot Wars Z series?! Not only that, but he managed to defeat him as well! What the heck?! I thought only the main protagonists of the series could beat him with the spheres! And furthermore, why was he human instead in a mech unleashing those attacks?! Plus, he wasn't in the Shurouga Sin mech!"

"Anyways, since we already saw this scene, we're almost to the end," Zelretch said.

-Scene change: Emiya Residence-

Emiya Shirou, who was in his old age, was getting out of the futon he was sleeping in and went out to the porch of the Emiya residence. As he did, he then sat down on the porch.

"Looks like the moon is full today...reminds me of the last conversation I had with the old man..." he thought as he looked at the moon.

For a while, Shirou continued to look at the moon. As he did, a few thoughts came into him.

"Wow. Time goes by fast. I mean, I went from surviving a great fire to getting myself caught into a deadly war between heroic spirits over a cursed holy grail to finding out that I'm directly related to the Muramasa family to fighting corrupt magi, rogue dead apostle ancestors, and even an evil interdimensional space god that can control the Akashic Records from another dimension. By the root, Tohsaka and Luvia would yell at me for eternity if they find out about the last part."

"Yeah, we would," Ishtar and Astraea thought in unison.

Shirou let out a chuckle before he continued to look at the moon. "Still though...the many things that I have done in my life...I have no regrets with any of them."

Shirou then raised his hand at the full moon.

"Old man, I've done it. I've became the hero of justice you wanted to be. It wasn't easy, but I managed to fulfill your dream. And you were right about a few things. Being a hero of justice isn't that easy. There are times that would require a hard decision to make, and you may regret some of those decisions. But despite all of that, I did it. I fulfilled the promise I made for you."

Shirou then grasped his hand. As he did, his eyesight was getting worse and he felt his heart slowly beating.

"Well...it's about time huh? Looks like I'll be seeing you now...Saber..."

Shirou closed his eyes and dropped his arm. His heart stopped.

And just like that, Emiya Shirou died.

Just like how Emiya Kiritsugu did, under the full moon in the Emiya Residence.

With a smile on his face.

-Scene end-

As the scene ended, nearly everyone wanted to cry from how Shirou died. Even EMIYA let out a small tear as he now knew how his younger self died.

Not on a hill of swords, or being betrayed, but rather in the comfort of his own home, the same way Emiya Kiritsugu died.

And he felt relieved.

"So...you avoided the end I have come to..." EMIYA thought as he remembered how he died.

Irisviel felt like crying. "So that's how Shirou died...the same way that world's Kiritsugu died..."

"Shirou..." Jaguar-man said as she shed a tear.

"Yeah...it's quite ironic...and to think he spent the entirety of his life searching for someone..." Zelretch said.

"Who?" Arturia asked.

Zelretch let out a smirk. "You, young Arturia."

Arturia was shocked and blushed for a moment. "Me?"

"Yeah. After he graduated from the Clock Tower, he left on a journey to find you. During that journey, he met many new things and friends and fought enemies he has never seen before. Heck, he even went up against an evil space god for root's sake! All because he wanted to see you again!"

Arturia was shocked at the reason why Shirou became a heroic spirit. "Shirou...you spent all that time...searching for me?"

Mashu was amazed with what Zelretch said. "Wow...so Shirou-san endured all of that to meet you again Arturia-san...that's amazing."

"Yeah..." Arturia said as she felt happy.

Ishtar let out a sigh. As she did, she noticed Parvati who looked a little depressed. "Something wrong Parvati?"

"Hm? Oh, nothing. Nothing's wrong," Parvati said with a sigh.

Ishtar was confused for a moment, but she shrugged the feeling off.

Meanwhile, Irisviel had a few thoughts going in her head. "So, that's how my son became a heroic spirit...all to meet Arturia again...well then, looks like we have a winner here," she thought with a smile on her face.

"So, the King of Knights has the upper hand...that doesn't matter! The war is not over yet!" Astraea thought.

"Well then, now I know what Shirou's been up to, and while that explains some answers, he's still not going to escape my wrath! I'm going to have a serious talk with him later!" Jaguar-man yelled as she soon left the movie theater.

Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Sitonai, Astraea, Irisviel, and EMIYA let out a sigh. "Ah well, here she goes..."

Zelretch got out from his seat. "Well then, looks like the event is over, which marks my time to leave now. Hope to see all of you again!" he said with a smug grin.

And in an instant, Zelretch teleported back to the Kaleidoscope. As he disappeared, Ishtar and Astraea had a grim look on their faces.

"Something tells me he's going to return later..." they thought in unison.

_(Meanwhile...)_

"Well then, this was unexpected..." Merlin said.

"No kidding. Who would have ever though that Shirou became a heroic spirit by fighting dead apostle ancestors, corrupt magi, and an evil interdimensional space god who can control the Akashic Records from another universe! And he was just searching for Arturia! That's amazing, even for me," Da Vinci said.

"Well, that's love for you. It can help people surpass their boundaries."

"Exactly. Also, did you expect to see Zelretch here?"

"Nope. His surprise arrival even shocked me. I can't believe he actually came out of the Kaleidoscope to watch the scenes. And with a bag of popcorn netherless."

"Me too."

The two were silent for a moment before Merlin came up with an idea in his head.

"Hey Da Vinci, can I borrow the footage for a moment?"

"Well...sure, but why?"

Merlin let out a sinister smirk. "Oh, you'll see..."

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks to Merlin's idea, news about Shirou's feat of killing an evil interdimensional space god who can control the Akashic Records from another universe spread throughout Chaldea.

And the reactions were crazy.

In Arturia's case, when she told her counterparts about the feat, they were amazed at how Shirou managed to take a task like that on himself. However, upon mentioning that he was searching for Arturia, Arturia and her counterparts got into a fight over who gets Shirou.

In Ishtar's case, when she told her counterparts about the feat, they were in disbelief over how Shirou managed to kill an evil space god. This disbelief even grew when she told them that Zelretch was there as well.

In Parvati's case, when she told her counterparts about the feat, they were shocked and scared that he managed to take on a god. However, when Parvati mentioned that he was searching for Arturia, they were a bit sad.

In Sitonai's case, when she told her counterparts about the feat, they had their mouths dropped at what he just did.

In EMIYA's case, when he told his counterpart about the feat, he was dumbfounded over what his younger self did.

In Cu and his counterparts' case, they were shocked and interested in the feat and wanted to ask Shirou what it felt like to kill an evil space god.

In Medusa's case, she was stunned to find out that Shirou killed an evil space god. And for some reason, she felt a bit of satisfaction.

In Medea's case, she was shocked to hear that Shirou killed an evil space god.

In Sasaki's case, he was interested and wanted to know what it felt like to kill an evil space god.

In Hercules's case, he didn't care.

However, in Gilgamesh's case, he was not amused over the fact that Shirou killed an evil space god. Furthermore, his counterparts even scolded him when he attacked Shirou and Arturia out of jealously, annoying him even further.

In Nero and her counterparts' case, they were excited and amazed over how Shirou managed to kill an evil space god by himself and wanted to ask him about the details.

In Jeanne D'Arc and her counterparts' case, Jeanne D'Arc and her Alter Santa Lily counterpart were amazed while Jeanne D'Arc Alter laughed at how Shirou managed to kill an evil space god.

In Okita and her counterparts' case, they were shocked at what Shirou just did.

In Musashi's case, she was amazed, excited, and wanted to know how the fight went.

In the Knights of the Round's case, they were amazed about Shirou's feat. Especially Mordred.

In Hakuno's case, she was shocked that Shirou killed an evil space god. Not only that, but after seeing the scene of Gilgamesh attacking Shirou and Arturia, she decided to give him a punishment worse than a restraining order.

In Sieg's case, he was amazed with Shirou's feat.

In Scathach and her counterpart's case, they were amused with Shirou's feat. Especially Scathach since she never met an evil space god before.

In Waver's case, he was completely dumbfounded over the fact that Shirou killed an evil space god and had his mouth dropped to the ground, making Reines amused by his reaction while Gray was surprised.

In both Amakusa Shirou and Arthur's case, they were surprised that Shirou killed an evil space god.

In Jack, Paul, Nursery, and Abigail's case, they were amazed and a little bit sad that they didn't get to see it in the movie theater.

All and all, everyone in Chaldea was having a field day.

However, it led to one simple question.

Which side was the true side of Emiya Shirou?

The one who works in the kitchen, helps everyone, and is Da Vinci's favorite guinea pig? Or the one who fights against dead apostle ancestors, corrupt magi, and an evil interdimensional space god that can control the Akashic Records from another universe?

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Omake

Shirou let out a moan as he woke up from his sleep. "Mnnnnh...what happened? The last thing that I remembered was that I was walking in the hallway and suddenly passed...out..." After a moment of quick thinking, he realized what happened. "Merlin. This was Merlin's doing...well, guess I'll talk to him later and get an explanation," he thought as he let out a sigh. Shirou then proceeded to get out of bed. However, it was then he realized something.

He couldn't move.

As he tried to move his arms and legs, he saw that they were held on by something. "What the heck?! Why can't I move?! Who's holding onto me?!"

However, it was then that he got his answer. In the form of many voices.

"Shirou..." the voices muttered.

Shirou immediately knew the voices. It was Arturia and her counterparts.

And that was when Shirou realized that he was in a den of lions, and there was no escape...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: I do not own Asakim, the many attacks he unleashed, and Super Robot Wars Z. Banpresto does. Also, I do not own Beryl Gut. FGO does.


	77. A Hero's Fame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so FGO mobile released Caren Hortensia as a Ruler-class servant...well, looks like Cu, Kid Gil, and Rasputin cannot escape now. Who's next? Bazet? Issei? Ayako?

Shirou was having a weird day. In fact, this may be the weirdest day he has ever experienced.

It all started one morning when Shirou woke up on his bed, realizing that Merlin was responsible for knocking him out yesterday. However, when he tried to get out of bed, he realized something.

He was not able to get out of bed. Furthermore, the reason why he was not able to get out of bed earlier was that Arturia and her counterparts were holding on to Shirou, preventing him from leaving.

It took a while for Shirou to quietly escape from Arturia and her counterparts.

And right now, Shirou was walking down one of Chaldea's hallways, minding his own business. However, whenever he would pass by a few servants, they would whisper something.

"Is that true?"

"Yes, it's true actually..."

"Wow, guess there's more to Emiya Shirou than meets the eye..."

"Wow. A servant that can fight extremely well and cook extremely well...whoever gets him will be the luckiest person alive..."

"Indeed. His heroic tale may even surpass the King of Heroes' tale..."

Shirou was confused with the comments and conversations he was hearing from the other servants. "What is going on today? Everyone's whispering around me and they're keeping a distance from me...did I do something wrong here?" he thought.

As he continued walking, he eventually arrived at the cafeteria, where EMIYA was there, cooking for the other servants. As Shirou was walking towards the kitchen, everyone that was in the cafeteria was looking at him, confusing him even further. "Okay, everyone's looking at me. Just what is going on here?!" he thought.

Soon, Shirou got to the kitchen. "Need some help?" he asked.

"Yeah. Help me with making those dishes over there," EMIYA replied as he pointed to a corner of the kitchen.

"Got it." Shirou then headed towards the corner EMIYA was pointed out earlier and started on the dishes he was talking about earlier. As the two were cooking in the cafeteria, EMIYA continued the conversation.

"So, did anything happen today?" EMIYA asked.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "Yes. I woke up after being knocked out by Merlin for unknown reasons, and the first thing that I noticed was that Arturia and her counterparts were in my bed with me."

EMIYA stopped for a moment upon hearing those words from Shirou's mouth. "You're kidding me."

"Yeah. Luckily, I managed to slip out of my room before anything drastic happened. Although now I'm wondering why Merlin knocked me out earlier..."

"You think Merlin's the one responsible for knocking you out?"

"Yeah. I mean, he's the only one that likes to knock me unconscious, besides mom and Da Vinci of course."

"True..." EMIYA said as he was done making a dish.

Shirou and EMIYA continued cooking. As they did, it was then that four certain servants came into the cafeteria with a smile on their faces.

It was Cu and his counterparts.

"Hey kid!" they exclaimed in unison.

Shirou stopped what he was doing and turned to see Cu and his counterparts, who were coming at Shirou with a grin on their faces.

"Cu?"

"Hey kid, why didn't you tell us?" Proto Cu asked.

Shirou was confused. "Tell you guys what?"

"Isn't it obvious? You didn't tell us that you were able to kill an evil interdimensional space god who was able to control the Akashic Records from another universe!" Caster Cu stated proudly.

Upon hearing those words, Shirou nearly dropped what he was doing while EMIYA let out a sigh. "Well, there goes the secret," he thought.

"How do you guys know that?! I didn't tell anyone about that event! Who told you this?!"

"That wizard Merlin did," Cu Alter said.

Shirou mentally groaned upon hearing Merlin was the one that spilled the event on that day. "Merlin...just what did you do to me after you knocked me unconscious...I swear, you'll better give me an explanation about this once I find you..." he thought.

"Hey kid, you all right over there?" Cu asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just...gathering my thoughts for moment." Shirou then resumed to what he was doing. "So, how much do you know about that event?"

"Well...me and my counterparts know about your fight against Asakim Dowen, an evil interdimensional space god who was able to control the Akashic Records from another universe," Cu replied.

"I see. Anything else did Merlin tell you?"

"Well...he did show us some of the events of the fifth Fuyuki Grail was you, me, and your future counterpart was in. And some parts of your life as well."

"Anything else?"

"Nope."

Shirou let out a sigh. "I see. So that's how much Merlin revealed..."

"Yup. Anyways, why didn't you tell us that you killed an evil interdimensional space god who was able to control the Akashic Records from another universe?"

"Well, it's not something you can blurt out during a casual conversation. I mean, the words, 'evil interdimensional space god who was able to control the Akashic Records from another universe,' is something that isn't taken lightly. If word spread about this feat, people would come after me, and I would end up on a sealing designation."

"But you can still beat them up though," Proto Cu said.

"Well, that's true. But that's not the point. The point is that I don't want to attract any attention. I don't care about the deeds that I did, and that is that."

Caster Cu let out a smirk. "Spoken like a heroic spirit huh?"

"Seems so. Also, you might want to stay away from shishou and her counterpart for a while," Cu Alter said.

"Why?" Shirou asked.

"Well..." Cu and his counterparts said nervously as they recalled a conversation they overheard yesterday...

_(Yesterday...)_

Cu and his counterparts were walking down the hallway, minding their own business. As they did, they passed by one of Chaldea's recreational rooms and overheard a conversation from two certain servants.

Scathach and her counterpart.

"So, Emiya Shirou was able to kill evil interdimensional space god who was able to control the Akashic Records from another universe...that sounds interesting..." Scathach said.

"I know. And the fact that he did it on his own is quite impressive," Scathach Skadi replied.

"Indeed. He may be a worthy successor to the Land of Shadows..."

Upon hearing the last sentence, Cu and his counterparts had one thought in mind.

_"Oh shit! The kid's screwed!"_

_(Back to the present...)_

Both Shirou and EMIYA were surprised at the conversation Lancer Cu said. "Really? Scathach was thinking that I may be a worthy successor to the Land of Shadows?"

"Yeah. Honestly, seeing you as the successor to the land of shadows...it freaks me and my counterparts out."

"How so?"

"Because...in order to be the successor, you would have to go through her hellish training regime..." Lancer Cu said as he and his counterparts started clutching their heads in fear.

At that moment, both Shirou and EMIYA immediately knew how cruel Scathach's training is and asked, "It's that bad?"

"Bad? Hah! Bad doesn't even hold a candle to it..."

Shirou let out a small sigh. As he did, it was then he heard a few rumbling sounds in the distance, and he and EMIYA knew what that sound was.

It was the sound of Arturia and her counterparts heading towards the cafeteria.

"Hey Cu, I think you might want to move now..." he said.

"Why?"

And at that moment, Arturia and her counterparts arrived with a look of hunger on their faces.

"Shirou! Food!" they exclaimed in unison.

Cu and his counterparts looked at Arturia and her counterparts, then back to Shirou and EMIYA.

"That's why."

"I can see that," Lancer Cu said.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou let out a sigh as he was walking down the hallway. After cooking up Arturia and her counterparts their daily meal (which was nine servings of food each), Shirou was finally able to take a break from the amount of cooking he did.

As he continued walking down the hallway, he would pass by some servants who were whispering to each other, and unlike before, he had a hunch of what they were talking about. "Wow. Word about me killing Asakim Dowen spread so quickly," Shirou thought as was walking past a few servants. Soon, Shirou reached a corner of the hallway, and that was when he met a certain servant...or rather, bumped into her, literally.

That servant was Osakabehime, and she was carrying a bunch of books and papers.

As the two bumped into each other, they both fell to the ground instantly.

"Ow!"

"Ouchie!"

The two fell to the ground, resulting in the books and papers that Osakabehime fell to the ground immediately. As they were recovering, Shirou got a better view of who he just bumped into.

"Osakabehime?"

"Hm? Ah! S-Shirou! Sorry for bumping into you!" Osakabehime replied.

"It's all right. I'm the one who bumped into you to begin with," Shirou replied as he noticed the books and papers that were on the ground. "You need some help picking those up?"

"Y-Yes!"

Shirou and Osakabehime then picked up the books and papers that fell earlier. As they did, Shirou noticed something that caught his eyes in one of the papers.

It was a drawing of the clash between him and Asakim Dowen.

Shirou examined the drawing of the clash between him and Asakim Dowen, and for a moment, he was stunned and impressed with how near accurate the clash was. "Wow. The clash between me and Asakim...it's already this popular among servants..." he thought.

"Um...Shirou, are you okay?" Osakabehime asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh yeah, I'm fine. Here you go," Shirou replied as he handed Osakabehime the drawing.

"Thanks..." She then grabbed the drawing. "So...you saw it huh..."

"Yeah...there is one question I want to ask you Osakabehime."

"Y-Yes! What is it?"

"That fight between me and Asakim Dowen...did Merlin tell everyone about it?"

"I think so. Yesterday, nearly every Japanese servant was in a frenzy upon seeing the match between you and that Asakim guy."

"Figures...anyways, I'll be on my way now. I need to find Merlin..."

"Okay! See you later Shirou!"

"Yeah. See you later Osakabehime."

And then the two went their different ways. As time passed, Shirou then passed by another servant who recognized him immediately.

Mordred Pendragon, the Knight of Treachery.

Mordred let out a huge smile upon seeing Shirou. "Hey there mother!" she exclaimed happily.

"Hey there Mordred. Is there something you need from me?" Shirou replied.

"Hey mother, can I borrow Tsumugari Muramasa for a moment?"

Shirou nearly did a spitake and was dumbfounded upon hearing Mordred's request. "What?" he asked.

"Huh? You didn't hear me properly? Can I borrow Tsumugari Muramasa for a moment?" Mordred repeated.

"Hm? Oh, yeah...and let me guess. Merlin told you about my feat against Asakim Dowen on which I killed him with Tsumugari Muramasa and you wanted to try out Tsumugari Muramasa, right?"

"Exactly!"

Shirou let out a sigh. "Yeah, Mordred, I don't think that's going to work."

"Eh? How come?"

"Because Tsumugari Muramasa is only accessible by my reality marble. Plus, the usage of it results in immediate death, and for some reason in my case, a loss of mana. So, yeah, sorry about that."

"I see..." Mordred said as she sounded a little disappointed.

"However, I can offer you this," Shirou said as he raised his hand. As he then projected something in his hands. Soon, a sword appeared.

That sword was Caliburn.

Upon seeing Caliburn appear in Shirou's hands, Mordred's eyes lit up immediately. "Really?! I can have this mother?!" she exclaimed with surprise in her voice.

"Sure."

With glee, Mordred quickly took Caliburn and held it in her hands. As she did, she felt amazed at feeling the sword of selection in her hands, even though it was traced. "Thanks mother!"

"No problem Mordred."

And the two went on their separate ways. Shirou continued walking down the hallway he was on. As he did, he then met up with three certain servants.

Ritsuka, Hakuno, and Sieg.

"Hm? Master? Hakuno? Sieg?"

"Shirou, what you did in your life was amazing," Ritsuka said in awe.

"Yeah. I never seen anyone kill a god before. Furthermore, an evil interdimensional space god who was able to control the Akashic Records from another universe. That's something never heard of," Sieg said in amazement.

"Exactly. Even the moon cell doesn't have any information about Asakim Dowen, and that's saying something," Hakuno said.

"Speaking of which, can you train with me later?" Sieg asked.

Shirou was silent for a moment before continuing the conversation. "I take it that all three of you saw the event then?"

"Yup," the three said in unison.

"Figures..." Shirou said.

"Anyways, you won't believe what Hakuno did after seeing the footage Merlin sent to her," Ritsuka said.

Shirou was confused for a moment. "What do you mean?"

Hakuno let out a sigh. "It's a long story..." she said as she began to recall the tale of what happened earlier...

_(Earlier...)_

"Hey! Why am I subjected to something like this?!" Gilgamesh yelled in anger.

"Shut up, King of Heroes. This is your punishment," Hakuno replied.

"Punishment?! For what?!"

"For trying to kill Shirou just because he was on a date with Arturia on that day."

Right now, Gilgamesh was tied up in the cafeteria as he was subjected to eating a giant plate of super spicy mapo tofu.

"Hey! I was trying to claim what was mine!" Gilgamesh argued.

"To you, maybe. But to me, it looked like you were jealous of Shirou and tried to kill him for a petty reason. And just for that, you deserve this. Now eat it," Hakuno said as she grabbed a spoonful of mapo tofu.

"But-!?"

"Eat it," Hakuno commanded in a scary tone as she shoved a spoonful of mapo tofu into his mouth.

Upon eating it, Gilgamesh was screaming as a burst of flames came from his mouth.

Meanwhile, Ritsuka and Mashu looked at the scene in shock. "Whoa..." they thought.

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's what happened," Hakuno said as she was done recalling the events.

Shirou was dumbfounded at what Hakuno did to Gilgamesh. For a moment, he was silent before continuing the conversation. "Really Hakuno? You actually shoved a spoonful of mapo tofu down his throat? And he screamed upon eating it?"

"Yup. Just to teach him not to meddle into someone's date."

Shirou wasn't sure to either be scared or amazed at what Hakuno did to Gilgamesh. "Jeez, Hakuno can be scary sometimes...just how scary can she be to Gilgamesh...wait, I do not want to know," he thought.

"Um...Shirou, are you okay?" Sieg asked, snapping Shirou out of his thoughts.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I was just in my thoughts. That is all. Anyways, has anyone of you seen Merlin? I need to have a conversation with him."

"About what?"

"Well, it's something private, so there's no need for any of you to find out."

"I see. Anyways, see you later Shirou."

"Yeah. See you later master, Hakuno, Sieg. Speaking of which Sieg."

"Yes?"

"I'll train with you later. Just let me find Merlin first."

Sieg's eyes lit up in excitement. "Great! Thanks, Shirou!"

And then everyone went on their separate ways. As Shirou continued walking down the hallways he was on, the whispers and conversation between the nearby servants continued, making Shirou sigh at the situation he was in. "Jeez, this is going to be a while to get used to..."

"Really? I thought you would enjoy the fame," a familiar voice said.

Shirou immediately knew that voice and turned around to see Merlin, who was sitting on the window stand with a smile on his face.

"Merlin."

"Greetings Queen Shirou."

Shirou let out a sigh. "I take it you were responsible for spreading news about that event?"

"Exactly," Merlin replied with no denial.

"Well, I'm going to regret asking this...but why?"

"Well, blame master for that. You see, he wanted to know the story of how you became a heroic spirit, so me, Da Vinci, and Irisviel devised a plan to see what feats you have done in your lifetime."

"So, you knocked me out just so that master can see my memories?"

"Yes...along with your family, Arturia, Ishtar, Parvati, Astraea, Mashu, and even Zelretch."

Shirou was surprised for a moment. "Zelretch?! He was there too?!"

"Yeah. He just appeared out and invited himself in."

Shirou let out a sigh. "Figures."

"Yeah. Anyways...sorry about that." Merlin then put his hands together in a pleading state. "Will you forgive me?"

For a moment, Shirou was silent as he didn't say anything. Then he had his answer.

"Well...since no harm came towards each other and it all started because of master's curiosity, I'll let it slide."

Merlin let out a small sigh of relief.

"However, he won't.

Merlin was confused for a moment before he felt a familiar paw hitting him in the face.

"Die, Merlin! Foooouu!"

In an instant, Fou kicked Merlin right in the face and started to beat him up...


	78. Valentine's Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Happy Valentine's Day! Hope everyone enjoyed their Valentine's Day and this chapter! As for me...I'll be alone...again...

_Valentine's Day, the day of love. Also known as Saint Valentine's Day._

_On this day, lovers would give each other gifts and spend time with each other, or some servants would receive chocolates from other servants as either obligation chocolates or homemade chocolates._

_And everyone in Chaldea celebrates it as well in the case many couples spending time together, some of the staff members receiving chocolates, and the single people and servants looking at the couples in jealously._

_And as for Shirou, this year's Valentine's Day would be crazy for him..._

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou was walking down the hallway, minding his business. As he did, he then noticed a lot of Chaldea's staff and servants setting up Valentine's Day-related decorations all over the wall. As he looked at the decorations that were being set up, Shirou immediately knew what was going on.

Valentine's Day was getting closer.

_"These decorations...this means Valentine's Day is getting closer huh?"_

As Shirou continued to look at the decorations being set up, it was then that he heard a voice calling out to him.

"Shirou!" the voice said.

Shirou then turned around to see Ritsuka coming towards him with a box in his hands. "Master?"

"Hey there Shirou. I have a request for you."

"What is it?"

"Can you help me set these decorations in this box around the walls?"

"Sure. I don't mind."

"Great!" Ritsuka then opened the box, revealing more Valentine's Day-related decorations. "All right then, all we need to do is that we just need to put these on the walls."

"Okay then."

Soon, Shirou and Ritsuka began to set up the decorations from the box on to the walls. As they were setting up the decorations, Shirou then started a conversation. "So, Valentine's Day is coming, right?"

"Yup. Which means that things are going to be busy around here," Ritsuka replied as he put up some of the decorations in the box.

"I can see that happening. Speaking of which, can I ask you something master?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"How is Valentine's Day in Chaldea like?"

For a moment, Ritsuka was silent for a moment before letting out a small sigh. "Shirou, Valentine's Day in Chaldea is quite chaotic."

"Really? How so?"

Ritsuka sighed again. "Well...for example, last year, Diarumid got chocolate from nearly all of the female staff from Chaldea. And they were all handmade too."

"You're kidding."

"I wish.

"And let me guess. It's all because of his love spot?"

"Exactly. And because of that, some of the male staff at Chaldea got a bit jealous of him, especially the ones that were single. Heck, even Blackbeard was jealous as well."

Shirou let out a small sigh. "I can see that happening. Any other stories that I should know about?"

Ritsuka gave Shirou's question some time to think before an answer came up. "Oh yeah. There was the time where Raikou, Serenity, and Kiyohime hid in my room and gave me chocolate during last year's Valentine's day."

Shirou was surprised at what Ritsuka said. "Really? They were hiding in your room?"

"Yeah. Kiyohime was hiding under my bed, Serenity was hiding in the vents, and Raikou was hiding in the closet. They said this was a one-time thing, but to this day, I check the entirety of my room to see if any of them still hide in my room whenever I return."

"Wow...that's something I've never heard of..."

"Yeah. Anyways, do you have any Valentine's Day stories to share Shirou?"

"Well...I don't have that many actually. In my high school years, I didn't care that much about Valentine's Day since there I didn't attract that many attention. The same as well in my years in the Clock Tower, aside from Tohsaka and Luvia."

"I see. Well, let's hope this year won't be as crazy as last year."

And Shirou and Ritsuka continued to set up the decorations on the walls.

Little did they know was that Shirou was going to receive a big surprise on Valentine's Day...

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hm, looks like I should use more cacao powder," Arturia Alter said.

"But that will make the chocolate more bitter!" Arturia Lily said.

"Exactly," Santa Arturia Alter.

Arturia let out a sigh. "All of you, stop messing around."

Right now, Arturia and her counterparts were in Chaldea's kitchen, making chocolate. Normally, they wouldn't make chocolate because they had not reason to.

However, this year was different because of Shirou's arrival earlier.

Which gave them a valid reason to make chocolates for Valentine's Day.

"Let's see...add the cacao butter to the bowl and stir gently..." Caster Arturia said as she was stirring cacao butter into the bowl.

"Hm...maybe I should add this..." Mysterious Heroine X Alter said as she added in some nuts to her mixture.

"Hey younger me, don't try to do anything to that chocolate. That chocolate is for Shirou after all," Mysterious Heroine XX said.

"I know, I know," Mysterious Heroine X said.

"Hm...I wonder if this will be good..." Ruler Arturia said as she looked at the chocolate she made.

Lancer Arturia Alter temporarily stopped what she was doing for a moment and looked at her Ruler counterpart's chocolate. As she did, she was stunned at what she made.

She made chocolate in a shape of a heart, with mini strawberries on the top as well.

For a moment, she was slightly impressed with her Ruler counterpart's work. "Damn. That looks good...still though, I won't lose!" she thought as she went back to her chocolate.

Meanwhile, Lancer Arturia looked at her Ruler counterpart's chocolate and had the same thought as Lancer Arturia Alter. "Wow. So that's what my Ruler counterpart made...even more reason to not lose!"

"Are you adding oranges to the chocolate?" Archer Arturia asked.

"Yes. It's well known that oranges go well with chocolate," Rider Arturia Alter said as she added some slices of orange to the chocolate.

"Anyways, let's finish this up before Valentine's Day begins!" Arturia said.

"Yeah!" her counterparts replied in agreement.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"By the root, this is taking too long!" Ishtar yelled as she was looking at her pot of melted chocolate.

"Calm down Ishtar. Nothing will happen if you keep yelling like that," Ereshkigal said as she was mixing chocolate together.

"Still though, this is a bit tedious for me, even for a goddess..." Rider Ishtar said.

Meanwhile, Archer Ishtar was still looking at the chocolate that was still melting in the pot, and to her frustration, she was thinking that it was taking to slow to melt.

"Argh! That's it! I'm lighting this up!" Archer Ishtar yelled as she began to turn up the heat as he pointed her finger at the flame.

"W-Wait Ishtar! Are you sure about this?!" Ereshkigal asked.

"Why? I'm just turning up the heat for a bit."

"With your finger?! Are you trying to blow up the pot?!" Rider Ishtar asked.

"Relax. I'm going to use a little bit of my power and that's it. What's the worst thing that could happen?"

Ishtar then shot a tiny beam at the high flame that was heating the pot. However, it was a big mistake.

Because as soon as the blast hit the flame, it created an explosion, resulting in nearly everything being burned. Ereshkigal then grabbed the nearby fire extinguisher and put the flames out. Eventually, the flames disappeared, revealing a burned kitchen.

Ishtar, her Rider counterpart, and Ereshkigal were looking at the kitchen in despair. For a moment, they didn't say anything. Then Ereshkigal let out a few words.

"Well...guess we're going to the shops then..."

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay...almost there..." Passionlip said as she carefully tried to pick up the chocolate without breaking the table in the process. "And...there we go!" she said in relief as she managed to pick up the chocolate without breaking the table.

"Phew. That was close," Kingprotea said as she was making her chocolate.

"Yeah. I thought I was going to break the countertop..."

"Me too. Well, it's a good thing that you didn't cause any destruction. Remember what happened yesterday?"

"Oh yeah. I heard Ishtar wrecked the kitchen...and got scolded later."

"Yeah. Luckily, they were able to fix it. Although we need to be more careful if we do not want a repeat of that again."

"Exactly."

"Hey BB! What are you doing?!" Meltlilith yelled.

"Oh this? Well...I'm just adding something to the chocolate that I will give to senpai later..." BB replied with a chuckle.

Meltlilith then grabbed the bottle that BB was about to pour into the chocolate and examined it. Upon looking at what the bottle was, she was in shock. "Are you serious?! You're adding a dangerous love potion to this!"

"So?"

"So?! That ruins the concept of Valentine's Day!"

"That doesn't matter! As long as I give the chocolate to senpai and he accepts it, that's all I care for! Because he will be mine!" BB said with a maniacal laugh, scaring Meltlilith, Passionlip, and Kingprotea.

_"Scary..."_

"All right, now I just need to add this to the chocolate, and it will be perfect," Parvati said.

"Still though, why are we doing this?" Kama asked as she was looking on the side.

"Isn't it obvious? To show appreciation to senpai. You should try this out more often. It's actually quite fun."

Kama let out a sigh. "Well, if you say so..."

Parvati let out a smile. "Great. Now let me show you..."

Thus, Parvati began teaching Kama how to make chocolate...

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Illya! Sorry, but I'll be making the best chocolate!" Kuro said.

"I won't allow that!" Illya replied.

Sitonai let out a sigh. "Those two will have that rivalry forever...and it's hard to believe she's me," she said.

"I can see that," Miyu said.

Right now, Illya and her counterparts along with Miyu were making chocolate for their entire family, especially for Shirou. As they were making the chocolate, a competition between Illya and Kuro over who can make the best chocolate popped up.

"Give up Illya! You don't stand a chance against me!"

"Maybe...but I won't give up! I will make this chocolate and give it to onii-chan!"

Kuro smirked. "Likewise!"

Sitonai looked at the two and sighed again. "Looks like we'll be dealing with this for a while..."

"Seems so," Miyu said.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right! Now I need to do is to put the white chocolate on low heat and let it sit until all melts. Speaking of which, I should check on "that" right now," Astraea thought as she was checking on the white chocolate that was in the pot. She then went to the fridge and grabbed a certain item from the counter.

Which were handmade wafers.

"With the combination of the white chocolate and the handmade wafers, my chocolate won't lose! I can't wait to give this to Sherou when the chocolate is done!" she thought as she added the wafers on top of the chocolate. As she did, she smiled at her creation. "Great! It's perfect now! All that's left is to wait until Valentine's Day! And I'm not going to let that useless goddess get in the way!" she thought.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"All right! We have the ingredients that you needed!" Nero said in excitement.

"Exactly! Now let us make the chocolate for our praetors!" Caster Nero replied in agreement.

"Umu!" Bride Nero said.

Soon, Nero and her counterparts began working on their own chocolates. "So, caster me, what are you going to make?" Nero asked as she was working on her chocolate.

Caster Nero let out a smile. "Well, I'm making milk chocolate with some caramel inside!"

"I see! And what you Bride me?"

"Well, I'm making white chocolate with some blueberries inside!" Bride Nero replied.

"I see! As for me! I am making dark chocolate with some raspberries inside!"

"Excellent choice me!" Caster Nero and Bride Nero said in unison.

Time passed as Nero and her counterparts were working on their chocolates. Eventually, they were done with their chocolates, and they were satisfied with the results they created.

"Umu! This looks great! All that's left is to give them to my praetors!" they all thought in unison.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily were walking down the hallway, minding their own business. As she did, they came across a certain scene.

It was Jeanne D'Arc Alter in the kitchen alone, and she was making something.

"Hm...so I add this to the pot and wait for it to melt...should be that easy..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

As Jeanne D'Arc Alter was looking at the pot, Jeanne D'Arc was looking at the scene with a smile on her face. "So, my little sister is making chocolate huh? I wonder who could it be...speaking of which, I should make some for Sieg too."

"Wow. I've never seen my older self making something in the kitchen..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily said in awe. "I want to see..."

Jeanne D'Arc let out a smile. "Well then, let's go and see."

Soon, Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily quietly entered the cafeteria. As they did, Jeanne said, "So, what are you making my little sister?"

Upon hearing her non-altered counterpart's voice, Jeanne D'Arc Alter nearly jumped and saw Jeanne D'Arc and Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily. "W-What are you two doing here?!"

"Isn't it obvious? Checking on what you are up to," she said with a smile on her face. "And it seems...you're making chocolate, aren't you?"

"Y-Yeah! So what?! It's none of your business!"

"Is that so? Who's the chocolate for then?" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily asked.

"I-It's for me! I just want some chocolate! Is there something wrong with that?!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter argued.

However, Jeanne D'Arc Alter didn't buy her older self's excuse. "Yeah right..."

"Anyways, this looks fun. We should join in as well!" Jeanne D'Arc said as she began to grab some pots.

"I agree!" Jeanne D'Arc Alter Santa Lily replied in agreement.

Jeanne D'Arc Alter let out a sigh.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay. Now I need to wait for the chocolate to melt," Okita thought as she watched the chocolate in the pot melt over the flame. As she was watching, a few thoughts came into her mind. "Valentine's Day...from what I heard, it's a holiday normally for couples where girls give chocolates to the person they love. However, there's also obligatory chocolates which is for appreciation. Still though, I can't believe I'm making chocolate for Shirou-san. Although to be fair, this is for the katanas he gave me and my altered counterpart a long time ago..." she thought.

As Okita was done with her thoughts, she then turned to her altered counterpart and looked at her in shock at what she just did.

She just added oden ingredients into her pot of melting chocolate.

"Altered me! What are you doing?!" Okita yelled.

"I'm adding stuff to the chocolate," Okita Alter replied.

"You're adding oden ingredients into the chocolate!"

"Yeah."

"That will make the chocolate taste bad!"

Okita Alter then looked at Okita. "Really? It will?"

"Obviously!"

And thus, Okita began to give a lesson on making chocolate to her non-altered counterpart...

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Musashi was walking down the hallway, minding her own business. As she did, she overheard a few conversations about Valentine's Day from some of the staff and servants.

"Valentine's Day...what is that? Maybe I should ask master what Valentine's Day is..." she thought.

Musashi then continued walking to find Ritsuka. Eventually, she found him in one of the hallways. "Master!" she said, grabbing his attention.

"Hm? Oh, hey there Musashi," Ritsuka said as he turned around to see Musashi coming towards him.

"Hey master, what is this Valentine's Day that I've been hearing about? Is it a festival of some sort?"

"In a way, yes. Valentine's day is a holiday where loved ones exchange cards, candy or flowers. We also celebrate this in Japan as well."

"I see...this sounds fun! How do I celebrate this holiday?"

"Well...I think you need to either make or buy a gift and give it to someone you appreciate."

Musashi let out a smile. "Great! Thank you master! I'll be going now!" she said as she soon began to leave, hoping to find a gift.

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "I wonder what kind of gift will Musashi make? And I wonder who she will give her gift to..." he thought.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shirou woke up with a yawn as he was getting out of bed. As he did, it was then he heard a few noises outside of his room. "Hm? What's going on outside? Is there a fight again?" he thought. Shirou then opened the front door and was in shock at the sight in front of him.

Because in front of him was a huge fight between Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc Alter, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi. On the side were boxes of gifts, Ritsuka, and for some strange reason, Da Vinci with a bucket of water.

"I want to give my gift first!"

"Back off! I want to do it first!"

"Not on your lifetime!"

"Umu! Nothing will come between me and my praetor!"

"Get off of me!"

"Never!"

"Stay away from Shirou!"

"Hands off of me!"

"Not until you do so!"

For a moment, Shirou was confused with the scene in front of him until Ritsuka signaled him to come towards him. "Um...master, what's going on?"

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Well, it's quite simple. They're fighting over who gets to be the first person who will give you chocolate. It all started when Ishtar, her counterparts, and Astraea met in front of your room at the same time, and they started arguing. Then things started to escalate when the others arrived, which led one thing to another, and...well...it resulted into this."

"I-I see, but why is Da Vinci here?"

Da Vinci let out a smirk. "Because I have a plan here. Shirou, come here for a moment. Also, take off the white Kimono and arm sleeve you're wearing right now."

Shirou was confused at Da Vinci's request. "Why?"

"Oh…you'll see…"

Still confused, Shirou did what Da Vinci asked him to do and took off his kimono and arm sleeve. "Okay. Now what?" he asked.

"This!" Da Vinci then poured the bucket of water on Shirou, getting him wet in the process.

"What the-Da Vinci! What was that for?!"

"Now, now. This is part of the plan. Now dry yourself up," she said as she handed him a towel. Shirou then dried himself up, which allowed Da Vinci to unleash phase 2 of her plan. "Ritsuka-kun. Now."

Ritsuka let out a sigh. "Hey girls?"

Upon hearing Ritsuka's voice, Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc Alter, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi stopped fighting among each other and turned around. As they did, they were greeted with a surprise they would never forget.

Which was a wet shirtless Shirou.

Normally for Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, and Astraea, they have already seen Shirou's body and were already used to it. But a wet shirtless Shirou?

That is a new thing for them.

Meanwhile, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc Alter, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi were in awe of seeing Shirou's body build for the first time.

And they all let out a blush.

Meanwhile, Shirou was done wiping himself with the towel. As he did, he then looked at Arturia and her counterparts, Ishtar and her counterparts, Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters, Illya and her counterparts, Miyu, Astraea, Nero and her counterparts, Jeanne D'Arc Alter, Okita and her counterpart, and Musashi, who were staring at them with a huge blush on their faces.

"Um...everyone...are you okay?"

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then in an instant, all the girls let out giant nosebleeds, resulting in a giant puddle of blood around them.

Shirou and Ritsuka were shocked at what just happened. "Everyone?!" they yelled in unison.

"P-Perfect..." Arturia and her counterparts moaned.

"That body...it's worthy for a goddess..." Ishtar and her counterparts muttered.

"Senpai's body...it was worth seeing it again..." Parvati, Kama, BB and her sisters muttered.

"Onii-chan's body...it must be preserved..." Illya, her counterparts, and Miyu muttered.

"Such...beauty...it's so divine..." Astraea muttered.

"Indeed...I want to draw that...and sculpt them..." Nero and her counterparts muttered.

"Me...too..." Jeanne D'Arc Alter said.

"Shirou-san's body...is a weapon of its own..." Okita and her counterpart muttered.

"Shirou-kun's body...I have no regrets seeing it..." Musashi muttered.

And then, everybody passed out from blood loss and fell to the ground.

"EVERYONE!" Shirou and Ritsuka yelled.

"Well, that's one way to solve the problem...although I'll admit, it was a bit overkill..." Da Vinci muttered.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Omake**

Archer Gilgamesh felt like this year's Valentine's day was going to be the same as before.

No chocolates from Arturia and her counterparts.

As he was walking down the hallway, he passed by a room and overheard a conversation that angered him dearly.

"Hey, did you hear?"

"Yeah. Apparently, the King of Knights, her counterparts, and a few others had a nosebleed upon seeing Emiya Shirou wet and shirtless. And apparently, they enjoyed it before passing out."

"Damn. That's something that I never heard of."

"Yeah. And it all started over who gets to give the gift to Emiya Shirou first."

At that moment, Gilgamesh was really pissed at what he just heard. "WHAT THE HELL?! HOW DID SABER AND HER COUNTERPARTS HAVE A NOSEBLEED UPON SEEING THAT FAKER'S BODY?! THIS IS BULLSHIT! WHEN I SHOW MY BODY TO THEM, THEY LOOK AT ME WITH DISGUST! BUT WHEN IT COMES TO HIM, THEY ACTUALLY ENJOY IT! THIS IS ABSURD! NOT ONLY THAT, BUT HE GETS CHOCOLATE FROM SABER AND HER COUNTERPARTS WHILE I DON'T?! THAT MONGREL!" he thought angrily.

Thus, Gilgamesh was in a bad mood for the whole day...


	79. Fan Girl

Shirou was walking in the hallway, minding his own business. As he did, it was then that he heard a voice coming from behind.

"E-Emiya Shirou-sama!"

Shirou nearly flinched at what the voice just called him. "What the heck?! Did that voice just call me Emiya Shirou-sama?!" he thought. Shirou then turned to see the person of the voice. As he did, he saw a woman who had blond hair in twin tails, a two-tone leotard that covered half of her body, boots that go up to half of her legs, and elbow gloves that covered most of her arms.

That girl was Bradamante, one of the Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne.

Soon, Bradamante got up close to where Shirou was and introduced herself to him.

"E-Emiya Shirou-sama! I-It's a pleasure to meet you!" she said nervously.

"Y-Yeah. And who are you?"

"M-My name is Bradamante! One of the Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne!"

"I see. Nice to meet you too Bradamante. What business do you have with me?"

"W-Well! I want to know more about you! Especially after from what I heard from Merlin-sama!"

Shirou let out a small sigh. "What did Merlin tell you about me?"

"Well..." Bradamante thought as she began to recall an event that happened earlier...

_(Earlier...)_

Bradamante was walking down the hallway happily, minding her own business. As she did, she then passed by Merlin, who was in front of her. Upon seeing him, Bradamante let out a smile and headed towards him. "Merlin-sama!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"Hm? Oh, hey there Bradamante. How are you doing?" Merlin asked with a smile on his face.

"I'm doing fine Merlin-sama! How about you?"

"Well...things have been crazy actually ever since Valentine's Day. Even by my standards, I still can't believe it."

"Believe what exactly?"

Merlin let out a small chuckle and a laugh. "I still can't believe that my student and her counterparts actually got sent to medical center just because they saw their queen shirtless and wet at the same time."

Upon hearing Merlin's words, Bradamante was surprised and confused at the same time. "Eh?! The King of Knights and her counterparts has a queen?!"

"Yeah. Remember the servant known as Emiya Shirou?"

"Hm? Oh yeah! He's the servant that can cook well, beat the King of Heroes, possesses a noble phantasm that surpasses the King of Heroes' noble phantasm, and killed an evil interdimensional space god that can control the Asakshic Records from another universe! Practically everybody knows him!"

"Exactly."

"So what does Emiya Shirou have any to so with the situation of the King of Knights and her counterparts?"

Merlin let out a smug grin. "Emiya Shirou is the King of Knights' and her counterparts' queen."

Brandamante's mouth dropped. "Eh?! Emiya Shirou is King of Knights' and her counterparts' queen?!"

"Yes, which makes him Mordred's mother in this case."

Bradamante was shocked with the news she just received. "How did this happen?! And since when?!"

"Well, ask Emiya Shirou for the answers you need. After all, he's the one that knows the details the best."

For a short moment, Bradamante was silent before continuing the conversation. "Got it! Where can find Emiya Shirou-sama though?"

Merlin was surprised for a moment before he let out a snicker. "E-Emiya Shirou-sama?"

Bradamante nodded. "Yeah. I mean, he's the King of Knights' and her counterparts' queen along with being Mordred's mother, so it's proper manners to call him that. Is there something wrong with that?"

"N-No..." Merlin muttered as he turned around to hide the snickering from Bradamante. "E-Emiya Shirou-sama...that's hilarious! And I thought Queen Shirou was funny, but this is new! Can't wait to see how he reacts to this title by Bradamante!" he thought. Merlin then turned around to see Bradamante. "Anyway, if you wish to find him, he should be in one of the hallways or the kitchen. I would recommend the kitchen first because he usually does his job over there."

"I see. Thank you Merlin-sama!"

"No problem."

Soon, Bradamante left Merlin's sight and went to find Shirou. As she did, Merlin let out a chuckle as he imagined the results.

_"Well then Shirou, how will you react upon meeting Bradamante...I can't wait to see the results..."_

_(Back to the present...)_

"And that's how it all began," Bradamante said.

Shirou let out a small sigh. "So, let me get this straight. You were curious about me because Merlin mentioned me after the accident on Valentine's Day. And you wanted to know about me a bit more after hearing about me being Arturia's and her counterparts' queen?"

"E-Exactly, Emiya Shirou-sama!"

Shirou sighed again. "Okay...I got the geist of things. So, you just want to know me a bit more Bradamante?"

Bradamante nodded in reply.

"All right then. Let's move to the cafeteria then to discuss things. Right here isn't a good time for a conversation. Is that okay with you?"

Bradamante's eyes lit up. "Yes!"

"Well, follow me then."

"Yes! Emiya Shirou-sama!"

Shirou sighed again. "Just call me Shirou Bradamante. You don't have to call me that."

"But you're royalty though! You're a part of the British royal family! Therefore, it's proper manners to call you by that!" Bradamante argued.

Shirou and Bradamante then walked down the hallway. As they did, Bradamante constantly asked Shirou questions about his lifestyle, his noble phantasm, and many more.

For once, Shirou felt overwhelmed from answering Bradamante's questions.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Merlin was walking in the hallway, minding his own business. As he did, he passed by the cafeteria and saw a sight that interested him ever since he told Bradamante about Shirou.

Which was Shirou and Bradamante having a conversation together.

"Eh?! The King of Heroes did that?!"

"Yeah."

"Well then! That sounds like a cowardly thing for him to do! Attacking you two while on a date...that makes my blood boil!" Bradamante yelled as she ate her food.

Merlin let out a chuckle upon seeing the scene in front of him. "Well then, things have gotten interesting between those two...I should check it out now." Merlin then entered the cafeteria and upon arriving, he caught the attention of both Shirou and Bradamante.

"Ah! Merlin-sama!"

"Hey there Merlin."

Merlin let out a smile. "Nice to meet you two, Bradamante, Shirou. I take it that you two already met earlier?"

"Yeah! I met Emiya Shirou-sama for a conversation about himself, and he led me to the cafeteria so we can talk better!"

"I see. And did you introduce yourself to Shirou properly, Bradamante?" Merlin asked.

"Yes! Merlin-sama!"

For a moment, Shirou was a little dumbfounded at what Bradamante just said to Merlin. "Merlin-sama? Really?" he thought. Then he stared at Merlin for a moment.

"What?" Merlin asked.

Shirou then got closer to Merlin and whispered to him. "Did Bradamante actually called you Merlin-sama?"

Merlin let out a chuckle. "Well, I did help her out once when I was trapped in Avalon, so she puts me on high regards," he whispered back.

"I see."

"What are you two talking about?" Bradamante interrupted.

"Hm? Ah, nothing," Merlin replied as he turned back to look at Bradamante. "Anyways, what do you think of Shirou so far?"

Bradamante's eyes lit up in excitement. "He's just as everything as I imagined! He's amazing, strong, nice, and do anything here! Guess the rumors about him were true! Especially the part about him being a great cook!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Shirou let out a sigh. "Just what kind of rumors about me have been swirling around in Chaldea...actually, I do not want to know..."

"As expected from Chaldea's strongest heroic spirit!"

Shirou let out a chuckle. "Well, that's not true Bradamante."

"Eh?! But why?! You possess two noble phantasms in which one of them is a counter against the King of Heroes' greatest treasures! If anything, that's pretty much a guarantee that you're the strongest servant!" Bradamante argued.

"Well, here's the thing Bradamante. Everyone has their own unique strengths and weaknesses that makes them who they are. There's no such thing as the strongest or the weakest. It all depends on the person itself. That's what I believe in."

Bradamante was amazed with what Shirou just said. "Um...if that's the case, then what do you think of yourself as Emiya Shirou-sama?"

"Well, for me, I consider myself in both strong and weak. There are things that I am good at, and yet at the same time, there are things I am not good at."

"I see...one question, were you born with the power you have now?"

Shirou chuckled again. "Not quite. The result you see right before you are the result of my travels. And plus, during my life, I was a third-rate magus that didn't know the basics of magecraft. I was only able to do projection and reinforcement."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Even now, I consider myself the same as before."

"I see."

"Um, I hate to interrupt you two, but what were you talking about earlier?" Merlin asked.

"Ah! Emiya Shirou-sama was talking about how he and the King of Knights met each other, and I was amazed with the story he was telling me! However, I can't believe how vile the King of Heroes was acting in that war over there! He sounds like a greedy, arrogant brute!" Bradamante replied.

Merlin let out a chuckle upon hearing Bradamante's words. "That is true Bradamante..."

"Anyways, can you continue the story Emiya-Shirou sama?"

"Yeah. Anyways, after the King of Heroes attacked both me and Arturia, I ended up summoning Avalon from me to protect myself and Arturia from Gilgamesh's attack. It worked, and he left."

Bradamante listened to the story in interest. "Go on..."

"After that, me and Arturia went up against Gilgamesh and his master, beat them, and destroyed the grail in the end."

"Eh?! You destroyed the grail?! But why?!"

"Well, the grail was already corrupted by then because of prior events. If anything, the grail would have ended up destroying the world if a wish was used, so we destroyed it for good measure."

Bradamante was amazed with what Shirou and Arturia did. "Wow...so what did you do after you and the King of Knights were separated?"

"Afterwards, I went on a journey to find her again. In the process, I ended up meeting my ancestor in spirit form along with gaining his noble phantasm, fought against many enemies, and ended up killing an evil interdimensional space god that can control the Akashic Records from another universe. And that's the end of my story."

"Wow...so you went through all of that during your time as a human before and after meeting the King of Knights...and accomplishing all of that...that's amazing!" Bradamante said in wonder.

"Indeed," Merlin said with a smile on his face. "And to think that you did all of that on your own...impressive."

"Yeah..." Shirou said as memories of his past came back to his mind. "All of those memories...those fights, my encounters and actions...they will always stay with me," he thought.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me of something. How did you become Queen Shirou to begin with?"

Shirou then pointed to Merlin. "Ask him."

Bradamante then turned to Merlin. "Merlin-sama?"

Merlin let out a chuckle. "To be fair Shirou, Mordred came up with the idea after she and the rest of the knights met you."

"Yeah. But you're the one who spilled the beans about me first," Shirou argued.

"True."

"Eh? So, Merlin-sama started the whole thing?"

"Well...in a way, I guess. But Mordred started the whole thing after all the knights found out about the relationship between you and Arturia and her counterparts," Merlin jokingly said.

"You can say that again..." Shirou muttered.

Merlin chuckled. "Anyways, you finally got your answer Bradamante?"

Bradamante let out a smile. "Yup! I finally now know who Emiya Shirou-sama is, his relationship with the King of Knights and her counterparts, and how wonderful he is! Thank you Merlin-sama!"

Merlin smiled. "You're welcome Bradamante.

"Ah! Before I leave, can I have an autograph from you, Emiya Shirou-sama?" Bradamante said as she pulled out a book out of nowhere.

Shirou then looked at Merlin, who already had a pen in his hands. He mentally sighed before continuing. "Sure," he said as he grabbed the piece of pen from Merlin. Afterwards, he then began to sign the book Bradamante gave him. "Here you go."

"Great! Anyways, bye Emiya Shirou-sama! Bye Merlin-sama!" Bradamante said happily as she grabbed the signed book.

"Bye Bradamante," Shirou and Merlin said in unison.

And Bradamante left, leaving Merlin and Shirou alone. For a moment, nobody didn't say anything.

"So...Emiya Shirou-sama?" Merlin teased.

Shirou let out a small groan. "Not...another word...Merlin..."


	80. A Devilish Nun

Ritsuka looked at the summoning alter in front of him. As he did, memories of the past came back to him. "Well, today's is my usual monthly summoning. I wonder what I will summon today. And hopefully, it will be a bit better unlike what happened last month. All those mapo tofu craft essences...ugh, even thinking about the words make me sick. It's a wonder how Hakuno is able to eat so much mapo tofu, and even a bigger wonder that Hakuno actually shoved a plate of mapo tofu into Gilgamesh's mouth..." he thought.

Ritsuka then placed the saved-up saint quartz onto the alter. "Anyways, let's see what I got..."

Soon, the alter lit up as the saint quartz disappeared, which then multiple blue orbs appeared. Then the blue orbs started to connect with each other and turned into a ring of blue sparks swirling around. Then the ring split into three and continued to swirl around. As the light faded, it revealed a gold card showing a woman who was carrying the scales of justice in one hand while a staff in the other hand. The card then disappeared as in its place revealed a teenage girl. The teenage girl has long silver hair, golden eyes, and was wearing a white dress. She was also carrying a bazooka that was colored in red, white, black, and has some heart designs on the side as well.

"Servant Ruler. The divine spirit amor, Caren C Hortensia, has arrived answering your summons. Fufu. So, this is the rumored Chaldea. It's quite wonderful it's so lively. Whether I'm fit or not for the preaching of love… Look forward to it," Caren said with a smile on her face.

For a moment, Ritsuka was speechless for a moment before continuing the conversation. "Y-Yeah. Nice to meet you, Caren. My name is Fujimaru Ritsuka."

"Fujimaru Ritsuka huh? Well then, I guess that makes you my master then huh?"

"Yeah. Although how do you know what Chaldea is? From what I know, Chaldea's existence is not known outside of the magus world."

"Yeah. About that...that is a secret for me to know, and for you to find out," she said with a horrifying giggle in the end.

Ritsuka nearly shrugged at the giggle she was giving. "A-Anyways, do you want me to give you a tour of Chaldea?"

"Yeah. I don't mind. And plus, since this is going to be where I'm going to live for now on, I might as well need a layout of the place here."

"I see. Anyways, let's go then."

However, it was then that Caren raised her hand and stopped Ritsuka from moving, confusing Ritsuka. "Um...Caren, what are you doing?"

"Oh yeah. I forgot to mention this but pay up."

Ritsuka was even more confused. "What?"

"You heard me. Since you are my master, you need to pay up for the fees upon summoning me."

At that moment, Ritsuka was shocked at what Caren said. "Huh?! I have to pay you?!"

"Yeah. Let's see here...summoning me costs about...200,000 yen."

Ritsuka's mouth dropped at her words. "WHAT?! 200,000 YEN?! I CAN'T PAY THAT MUCH! I DON'T EVEN HAVE THAT MUCH IN MY BANK ACCOUNT RIGHT NOW!"

Caren then let out a chuckle. "Relax. That was a joke."

Upon hearing that, Ritsuka felt relieved. "Really?! That was your idea of a joke?!" he asked with a sigh.

"Yes. And seeing your reaction was worth it. I've never seen such a reaction like that before..." Caren said as she started to giggle creepily shortly. "Anyways, let's move on, shall we?"

"Y-Yes."

Soon, Ritsuka and Caren left the summoning room and headed down the hallway so Ritsuka could give Caren the tour...

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Over there is the training room where servants go over there to hone their skills while learning some new ones as well," Ritsuka said as he was pointing at one of the rooms in the hallway.

"I see. And what's that room over there?" Caren asked as she pointed at a room in the hallway, making Ritsuka look at the direction she was pointing at.

"Hm? Oh, that room? That room is one of the recreational rooms we have here in Chaldea. Over there is where the servants take a break, relax, and do the activities that they like."

Caren nodded and then asked a question. "By any chance, does Chaldea have a library?"

"Yes. We have a library here where books about everything are stored in there. We also have a cafeteria, mini mall, and a casino."

"I see...is there a church here by the way?"

"Hm? Ah, sorry, but we don't have a church here. However, we do have servants that are related to Christianity by the way. Why though?"

"Well, I'm a nun of a church, so I was wondering if Chaldea has a church that needs my services."

"I see..."

As Ritsuka and Caren were walking down the hallway, it was then that they encountered Lancer Cú, who greeted the two with a grin on his face.

"Hey there master! Who's the little miss over there?" Cú asked.

"Cú, this is Caren C Hortensia, a new ruler class servant that just arrived here today. Caren, this is  
Cú Chulainn, one of the servants here in Chaldea."

"Hey there little miss," Cú greeted with a smile on her face.

However, Caren stared at Cú silently while glancing at him for a few seconds, confusing both Ritsuka and Cú.

"Um...is there something wrong with me little miss...?" Cú asked.

Caren then pointed her finger at Cú. "You smell doggy. I suggest you take a bath."

In an instant, Cú got mad upon hearing Caren's words. "Hey! I don't smell you little girl!"

"Don't talk back at me," Caren said as she slapped Cú with her hand.

"Why you-!" Cú said as he recovered from the slap...only to receive a bazooka in front of his face. "Whoa! Time out!"

"Yeah! Let's calm down here!" Ritsuka said as he was trying to prevent the two from causing any destruction in Chaldea.

For a moment, Caren didn't do anything and stayed silent. Then she brought back the bazooka. "Fine," she said as he hoisted it on her back.

Ritsuka let out a sigh of relief as the danger was over. "Now then, shall we continue the tour?"

"I guess. Let's go then."

Soon, Ritsuka and Caren headed out, leaving Cú behind.

_"Whoa...whoever that little miss was...she's scary. Maybe even more scary than shishou, her counterpart, or Medb...speaking of which, she felt familiar to someone...but who?"_

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kid Gilgamesh was walking in the hallway, minding his own business. As he did, he then came across Ritsuka and Caren.

"Hey there master," Kid Gilgamesh said.

"Ah. Hey there kid Gilgamesh," Ritsuka replied with a smile on his face.

"Master. Who is that person?" Kid Gilgamesh asked as he noticed Caren.

"Ah. This person over here is Caren C Hortensia, a new servant of Chaldea that arrived just now. Caren, say hi to Kid Gilgamesh here."

"Kid Gilgamesh? Does that mean there's an adult version of him around here somewhere?" Caren asked.

"Yes. Two of them actually. Although one of them...is...well..."

"A pain in the ass to deal with?"

"Yes."

"I see. Sounds like he needs a punishing when I meet him later. He shall be judged upon seeing me and my bazooka," she said sadistically.

Both Ritsuka and Kid Gilgamesh nearly sweat dropped at Caren's words. "Scary..."

"Anyways, nice to meet you Kid Gilgamesh," Caren said, snapping both Ritsuka and Kid Gilgamesh out of their thoughts.

"Y-Yeah. Nice to meet you too..." Kid Gilgamesh said as he raised his hand.

Caren then reached Kid Gilgamesh's hand and shook it. "Well then, shall we move on master?" she asked as she was done shaking Kid Gilgamesh's hand.

"Y-Yeah."

And Ritsuka and Kid Gilgamesh soon left, leaving Kid Gilgamesh alone.

_"Whoa...that older lady is pretty scary...although she reminds me of someone...but who though?"_

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, today seems to be a good day. There's nobody bothering me, and I'm able to do whatever I want. Nothing could go wrong today..." Angra Mainyu thought as he was walking down the hallway.

However, it was then that in the distance, he saw Caren and immediately freaked out on the inside. "What the hell?! How is that woman here?! I swear, first it was Emiya Shirou, now it's Caren Hortensia?! This is some serious bullshit I'm looking at here!" he thought.

Meanwhile, Ritsuka and Caren were walking down the hallway. As they did, they saw Angra Mainyu, who looked like he in fear and was doing some strange poses. "What the heck? What is up with Angra Mainyu? I've never seen him like this since his encounter with Shirou..." Ritsuka thought.

"Hey master, what is that servant doing over there?" Caren asked as she pointed at Angra Mainyu, grabbing Ritsuka's attention.

"I don't know actually. I've never seen Angra Mainyu act like this."

"Angra Mainyu? Is he a servant of Chaldea?"

"Yeah." "And he's an ancient evil god, although I shouldn't tell her that..."

"He looks like he needs some help. Should I help him master?"

"Go ahead."

Caren then walked towards where Angra Mainyu was, making him even more scared. "Oh crap! She's getting closer!" he thought. Soon, Caren got up to where Angra Mainyu was and she was staring at him, making him nervous.

For a moment, nothing happened between the two until Caren broke the silence.

"Hello. Can I help you with something? You seem to not look so good..." Caren asked.

"N-No. There's nothing wrong with me..." Angra Mainyu muttered.

"I see...your name is Angra Mainyu, isn't it?"

"Y-Yeah."

"I see...anyways, I hope that you're a good servant, or else...you'll get punished..." she said saidstically.

Upon hearing that tone of voice, Angra Mainyu shivered in fear. "Y-Yes..."

"Good."

_Caren soon left Angra Mainyu and headed towards to where Ritsuka was. As Angra Mainyu was let alone, a few thoughts came into his head._

_\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

__

"Well, looks like I'm dealing with a different world's Caren. Well, at least I'm safe...but still, she's still scary and sadistic as usual..."

"All right, all I need to do left is to carry the box to Da Vinci's room..." Shirou thought.

Shirou was walking down the hallway, minding his own business as he was carrying a box to Da Vinci's room. As he did, he then came across both Ritsuka and Caren, who were walking in the distance. "Is that...no way, she's here as well?" he thought.

Meanwhile, Caren noticed Shirou carrying the box. "So...Shirou's here as well..." she muttered.

"Eh? You already know Shirou, Caren?" Ritsuka asked.

"Yeah. I met him a few times when he was part-time enforcer. He would visit the church I was in sometimes."

"I see. Do you want to meet him?"

"Yeah."

"Well, go ahead then."

Caren nodded and headed towards to where Shirou was. As she got closer, she greeted him. "Hey there Shirou."

"Hey there Caren. It's been a while since we last saw each other huh?"

"Yeah. Before you disappeared off the earth that is."

Shirou nodded in reply. "So, you're a servant now huh?"

"Yeah. You too?"

"Yup. Anyways, what are you doing right now?"

"Oh, I'm carrying this box over to Da Vinci's room. She said she needs it."

Caren let out a small sigh. "You haven't changed Shirou. You're still the selfless self-sacrificing idiot that helps people no matter what. I'm not even sure to even scold or praise you for still being like this."

Shirou sighed as well. "And look at you, you're still the same that you were before. Speaking of which, are you still ripping people off again?"

"Yeah."

Shirou sighed again. "Really? You're still up to that?"

"Hey. You may call it evil, but to me, it's an easy way to get money. Anyways, you need help with that box over there?"

"No. I got it here."

"I see. Anyways, I'll be on my way with master here. See you."

"Yeah. See you."

And then, Caren soon left Shirou and headed towards where Ritsuka was. As he did, Shirou had a few thoughts going on in his head.

_"So...Caren's here as well...well, looks like things are going to be a lot more crazy around here...and it's already crazy here."_

_"So...Shirou's here as well...looks like my time in Chaldea will be interesting...fufufufufu..."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Caren's chapter up, and I did a bit of tweaking. You see, the wiki said that Armor Caren is based off from Caren from Fate/Tiger Colosseum, which is practically the same character as from Hollow Ataraxia (I think). However, there is one problem. Hollow Ataraxia takes place in a scenario after the Fuyuki Grail War, where Arturia, Rin, and Sakura were in. However, I chose the fate route Shirou, and by those standards, Arturia was already gone. So, I had to modify it so that only Shirou and Caren only knew each other because of prior events untold before. That's why she doesn't know Cu, Kid Gilgamesh, and Angra Mainyu in this chapter.
> 
> Damn, the Nasuverse is quite complicated when it comes to timelines...

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly, I have no idea what came over me when writing this lol. Although it would be interesting to see the reactions between Muramasa and the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, the Emiya family, and Astraea if DW WOULD MAKE MURAMASA A SERVANT!
> 
> Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this crazy mess of a fanfic I made XD.


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